Team Goemkarponn
Panaji: Goa got the better of Nagaland by 83 runs to score an important victory that boosts the prospect of their immediate return from Ranji Trophy Plate to Elite Group for next season.
Nagaland were all out for 255 in pursuit of victory target of 339, after the first session’s play was lost due to dampness in the ground owing to a spell of heavy rain last evening.
Debutant off-spinner Rahul Mehta (4/48) picked the crucial wicket of overnight batter Nischal D (94) to spark a sort of turning point in Nagaland’s defiant second innings display as the second wicket partnership with Hem (25) ended at 56 runs.
From 175/2, the Northeastern side collapsed to 196/6 before Chetan Bist and Suchith J (23) stemmed the rot with a 47-run partnership for the seventh wicket when skipper Darshan Misal struck a telling blow as he trapped Bist (41) LBW in the final session, to ensure the hosts maintained their supremacy in the Plate Group with six points from this victory taking Goa to 19 and atop the table. Misal (5/51) was named the Player-of-the match.
Goa will play Mizoram from 6th November at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ground B, at Ahmedabad.
