Tailender Lalrempuia Chhakchhuak would’ve felt his heart jump in his throat for 76 whole deliveries as the No 11 played his brave part in Chinmay Sutar making history for their Ranji team Mizoram.
The milestone came playing Nagaland in the Ranji Plate Division at their opponents’ home ground Nagaland Cricket Stadium in Sovima on Monday.
Unlike his pinch hitter father’s affinity for sixes, the 29-year-old southpaw’s unbeaten quadruple ton had only 7 maximums. But he faced 517 balls waltzing to his record as the 400 mark included 46 fours besides the seven big hits. Lalrempuia joined Chinmay at 392/9, and the duo went all the way to 581/9 decl, even as Mizoram’s guest player reached a sensational 400*. The No 11 finished on a doughty 14* (76) helping Chinmay as Mizoram picked a slice of history for themselves. Nagaland trail Mizoram by 531 runs.
“I told my partner that we will try to do small-small partnerships,” Chinmay told The Indian Express about the unlikely circumstances that threw up the big quadruple. “We were not thinking far ahead because one can’t plan especially with tailenders. Frankly speaking, I had just told him to hold on. Even when I was close to 400. I was not thinking about the milestone. We just wanted to play as long as we could. So that we could reach a good score,” the Mumbaikar-Mizo added.
In the process, Sutar became the second Indian to score a quadruple century in domestic cricket, 78 years after the first one came from the bat of BB Nimbalkar, who, playing for Maharashtra, had scored 443* against Kathiawad at Pune in 1948-49.
The 29-year-old batsman representing the north-eastern state, also became the 10th player overall to score 400 in the history of the game and joined an elite list of batters that includes Brian Lara, Don Bradman, Bill Ponsford, Graeme Hick and other big names.
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“I was not thinking about it. I didn’t think about 400 at all. I was just thinking about how many runs could be added to the team’s total before the last wicket. We focussed on small partnerships. As batsmen, we think about 100, 200. But 300, 400 is very rare. I got that chance today. I’m glad it happened to me,” Chinmay said after the day’s play.
The journeyman has played all his cricket in Mumbai – and alongside big names, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Sarfaraz Khan, Prithvi Shaw and others in Mumbai maidaans. He had been trying hard to crack into the senior Mumbai side, but wasn’t finding a place. The urge to play red-ball cricket had gnawed at him.
Mizoram player Chinmayi Suthar. (Instagram)
He played in a T20 Mumbai League held in June and then decided to move to North-East to play as a guest player. “My dream was to play for Mumbai in red ball cricket. I did play in white ball last year. But for me, it was always red ball first. I couldn’t fulfill my dream there. So I’m very grateful to Mizoram for giving me the opportunity to play for Ranji Trophy,” he added.
In his debut match this season, Sutar had scored 99 before he was run out. It had seemed like yet another instance of nearly-there, but not quite. The grand-daddy hundred was on the anvil.
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Before the 99, the southpaw plied his trade in Mumbai, playing for the esteemed domestic side in the Vijay Hazare Trophy before moving on to Mizoram.
He was 231 when the last batter, Lalrempuia, joined him. He survived two chances. One came early in his innings and the other when he was on 44. He was caught, but it was a no ball.
Son of former Mumbai batsman Rajesh Sutar, who was famous for his big hitting sixes, Sutar Jr was still trying to adjust to Mizoram culture. Coming from Mumbai, turning out as a guest player can feel completely different. Chinmay says though there isn’t a big cricketing culture in this part of the country, players are more hardworking and are very disciplined. “I didn’t manifest anything. I just wanted to win against my opponents. I wanted to contribute to my team. I wanted to take them into the Elite division,” he pointed out.
He might’ve rubbed shoulders with superstars of Mumbai cricket. But to Chinmay, the original hero is that man at home. “My father is my idol, I have grown up hearing about his batting skills. I always tried to copy him. He is a legend in my eyes,” Chinmay says.
