Dimapur: Nagaland will play against Manipur in the finals of the 1st NECDC Interstate Senior Men's Friendship Tournament today (April 3).
The much anticipated semi-final match between Nagaland and Meghalaya on Sunday had to be abandoned yet again for the second time after rain played spoilsport.
Owing to this, Nagaland as table toppers of Group-2 proceeded to the finals to take on Manipur for the 1st NECDC Interstate Senior Men's Friendship Tournament trophy.
Earlier, Nagaland having won the toss decided to field first and put the Meghalaya team to bat. Everything seemed to be working as planned for team Nagaland as the bowlers were able to restrict and check the opening batsmen from Meghalaya and in the process they got out Raj Biswa, Arien Bonchang and Wallambok Nongkhlaw cheaply for one, six and zero runs respectively.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]Meanwhile, Kishan Lyngdoh’s 22 runs and Kevin’s 24 runs steadied the innings for their team. Nagaland bowlers had a great start with the ball as Hopongkyu Sangtam, Nagaho Chishi and Imliwati shared two wickets each and Tahmeed Rahman took a lone wicket. However, the late cameo from Jaskirat’s 43 runs and Akash’s 45 runs, took Meghalaya to a big total of 168 runs on the scoreboard losing nine wickets after the match got reduced to 38 overs per side.
Nagaland’s run chase could not progress as rain interrupted the play with Hem Bahadur Chetri batting on six runs and Yugandhar Singh batting on 15 runs with 23 total runs on the board in 9.1 overs without losing any wickets.
The final match between Nagaland and Manipur will take place at Nagaland Cricket Stadium at 12 noon. Chief Minister of Nagaland and Convenor of NECDC, Neiphiu Rio will attend the finals and the prize distribution ceremony as the special guest.
Further, Nagaland Cricket Association has invited all sports lovers and supporters to be a part of the finals at Nagaland Cricket Stadium. The entry for the public will be from Gate No. 2.