Meghalaya beat Manipur by three runs in a Ranji Trophy Plate Group thriller in Shillong on Wednesday. Kevin Christopher scored 110 and took three second-innings wickets, and Abhishek Kumar claimed seven in the match as Manipur were bowled out for 272 chasing 276.
Shillong, India: Four days at the Meghalaya Cricket Association Ground ended with a margin so thin that a single boundary would have flipped the result. Manipur needed 276 on the final day, reached 272 and lost by three runs, and Meghalaya escaped with the points.
A century to set the terms
Manipur won the toss and chose to field, and Meghalaya made them pay. Christopher scored 110 off 125 balls and Swastic Chettri added 84 off 130 as Meghalaya reached 380 in 101 overs. Manipur answered with 277 in 92 overs, with Pheiroijam Jotin taking 5 for 79, which left Meghalaya a first-innings lead of 103.
Jotin drags Manipur back in
The lead should have been decisive. Instead, Jotin returned for a second spell of 4 for 21 and Meghalaya folded for 172 in 51.5 overs. Meghalaya’s combined lead stood at 275, which set Manipur 276 to win, a target that suddenly looked within reach.
The chase that came up three short
Manipur built the chase in pieces. Karnajit Yumnam made 53, Ronald Longjam 43 and Jotin 43 with the bat, and Rex Rajkumar played the innings that nearly won it, scoring 51 off 63 balls and sharing a 46-run stand for the last wicket. Meghalaya’s bowlers held their nerve through that final partnership. Christopher, having made the big first-innings hundred, returned 3 for 31, and Abhishek Kumar took 3 for 64 after his 4 for 60 in the first innings. Manipur were all out for 272 in 75.2 overs.
What comes next
Meghalaya face Mizoram next, from 26 October. Mizoram’s Chinmay Sutar made an unbeaten 400 against Nagaland earlier this week, so the Plate Group leg ahead will test a side that has just defended a modest total by the narrowest of margins.
Result: Meghalaya 380 (Kevin Christopher 110, Swastic Chettri 84) and 172 (Pheiroijam Jotin 4/21) beat Manipur 277 (Pheiroijam Jotin 5/79) and 272 (Rex Rajkumar 51, Karnajit Yumnam 53; Abhishek Kumar 3/64, Kevin Christopher 3/31) by three runs. Venue: Meghalaya Cricket Association Ground, Shillong. Competition: Ranji Trophy 2026-27, Plate Group, 18-21 October.
