Mizoram guest player Chinmay Sutar hits historic unbeaten quadruple century in Ranji Trophy

Batter Chinmay Sutar made domestic cricket history by scoring four hundred unbeaten runs for Mizoram against Nagaland in a Ranji Plate Division match at the Nagaland Cricket Stadium in Sovima on Monday. The twenty-nine-year-old left-hander faced five hundred seventeen balls during his long stay at the crease, hitting forty-six fours and seven maximums. He achieved this milestone after partnering with the last-ranked batsman, Lalrempuia Chhakchhuak, at nine wickets down. The pair put on an unbroken last-wicket stand of one hundred eighty-nine runs, with Chhakchhuak contributing fourteen runs from seventy-six balls while holding his end up safely. This effort took Mizoram's total to five hundred eighty-one for nine before they declared their innings, leaving Nagaland trailing by five hundred thirty-one runs.

Background

Sutar is only the second Indian player to cross four hundred runs in a single innings of first-class cricket, following BB Nimbalkar who scored four hundred forty-three not out for Maharashtra against Kathiawad back in the nineteen forty-eight to forty-nine season. He is also the tenth player in overall cricket history to reach this rare scoring milestone, joining a small group that includes prominent names like Brian Lara and Don Bradman. Sutar survived two chances during his knock, once early on and a second time when he was on forty-four before a caught dismissal was called back as a no-ball.

Journey

Before moving to the north-eastern state as a guest player for this season, Sutar played his cricket in Mumbai alongside well-known players such as Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Sarfaraz Khan, and Prithvi Shaw. He grew up hearing about the batting skills of his father, Rajesh Sutar, who was a noted big-hitter in the nineteen nineties and whom Chinmay considers his main idol. Sutar had previously played white-ball cricket for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy but shifted to Mizoram to fulfill his strong desire to play red-ball cricket after missing out on a spot in the senior Mumbai team. In his debut match for Mizoram earlier this season, he narrowly missed a century after getting run out on ninety-nine runs.

Context

Domestic cricket tournaments like the Ranji Trophy serve as the primary pathway for players in India to progress from state-level competition to national recognition. Guest player rules allow teams from developing cricketing regions to enlist experienced players from traditional cricket hubs to strengthen their squads and mentor local talent.