Tripura’s batting collapse resulted in their first loss in the Ranji Trophy against Karnataka by 29 runs at the MBB Stadium in Agartala on Monday. The hosts failed to chase down a modest target of 193 runs, despite a brilliant knock by Sudip Chatterjee and a spirited bowling performance by their pacers.
On the final day of the match, Tripura resumed their innings at 59 for 3, needing 134 more runs to win with seven wickets in hand. However, they could only manage to add 104 runs on the day, as they were bowled out for 163 runs. Chatterjee was the lone fighter for Tripura, scoring 82 runs off 144 balls with 10 fours. He was run out in a tragic end to his innings, which dashed Tripura’s hopes of a historic win. None of the other batsmen could support him, as they succumbed to the pressure of the chase.
For Karnataka, Vidyaartha Kaverapanna was the most successful bowler, taking four wickets for 44 runs. V. Vijayshankar also contributed with three wickets for 62 runs.
Earlier, Karnataka had scored 241 runs in their first innings. Tripura replied with 200 runs, conceding a 41-run lead to the visitors.
Tripura’s bowlers then came back strongly, dismissing Karnataka for just 151 runs in their second innings. Rana Dutta and Abhijit Sarkar took three wickets each, while Parvez Sultan and Shankar Pal chipped in with two wickets apiece.
With this win, Karnataka secured six points.
Tripura will now face Gujarat in their fourth match of the tournament, which will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad from February 2 to 5. Gujarat are the defending champions and one of the strongest teams in the competition.
Tripura have also announced their 20-member squad for their remaining two matches against Gujarat and Chandigarh. The squad will be led by Wriddhiman Saha. Manishankar Murasing, the allrounder is the vice-captain.
The squad is : Bikram Kumar Das, Bikash Ghosh, Sridam Pal, Sudip Chatterjee, Ganesh Satish, Wriddhiman Saha (Captain), Manishankar Murasing (Vice-Captain), Bikram Debnath, Parvez Sultan, Rana Dutta, Abhijit Sarkar, Shankar Pal, Arjun Debnath, Nirupam Sen, Riman Saha, Joydeb Deb, Sanjay Majumdar, Debaprasad Sinha, Babul Deb, Jaydip Bhattacharjee.
The team is coached by Jayanta Debnath, who is assisted by Kishore Mukherjee and Vineet Jain. The support staff also includes trainer Purnendu Jana, physiotherapist Rajan Chowdhuri, thrower Jayanta Debnath, masseur Nilanjayyoti Saha, and manager Manish Ghosh.
The team will leave for Ahmedabad on Tuesday and will hope to put up a better performance in their upcoming matches.
