GANGTOK, : Meghalaya beat Sikkim by six
wickets at the Sikkim Cricket Ground in Rangpo to win the 2nd NECDC Senior
Women’s Inter-State Tournament.
Monica Lyngdoh Phawa hit a
28-ball 37 and captain Debasmita Dutta scored a steady 35 as Meghalaya chased
down a 115-run target with three balls remaining to beat Sikkim, the last
year’s join winners with Nagaland.
After opting to bat first,
Sikkim had a slow start, managing only 25 runs for the loss of one wicket at
the end of 10 overs. A 43-run knock off 27 balls from Priyanka Kurmi and 29 off
20 balls from Preetika Chettri helped Sikkim post a competitive total of 114-4
in 20 overs. Meghalaya captain Debasmita Dutta and Monica Singh took one wicket
each, while two dismissals were via run-outs.
In the second innings, Sikkim
removed the swashbuckling Meghalaya opener Luiza Tamang early. However, experienced
campaigner Debasmita Dutta and young wicketkeeper-batter Monica Lyngdoh Phawa steadied
the innings with a 45-run partnership for the third wicket.
Sikkim claimed the prized
wicket of Dutta in the 15th over and picked up two more quick wickets to leave
Meghalaya at 94-6 at the end of 17 overs, with 21 runs needed from the final three
overs. Though Meghalaya lost two more wickets, their tail-enders made handy
contributions. Riticia B. Nongbet, who came in to bat with four runs needed off
four balls, scooped a boundary towards fine leg region to seal the match for
Meghalaya in 19.3 overs.
Both Meghalaya and Sikkim had
reached the final with last-over wins in their respective semi-finals and were
unbeaten before the final clash.
Monica Lyngdoh was adjudged
Player of the Match for her brilliant knock under pressure. Primula Chettri of
Sikkim was named Player of the Tournament for her all-round performance. She
also claimed the Highest Wicket-Taker award with nine wickets in four
matches. Samayita Roy Prodhan, also from Sikkim, finished as the tournament’s
highest run-scorer with 139 runs.
The final had
Namthang-Rateypani MLA Sanjeet Kharel as the chief guest.
The second edition of the NECDC
women’s tournament, hosted by Sikkim Cricket Association at the Sikkim Cricket
Ground, had started on April 7.
“The Sikkim Cricket Association
is happy to have hosted the NECDC tournament for the first time in Sikkim. It
was another big moment for cricket in the State and we thank NECDC for giving
us this opportunity. The tournament was played in great spirit by all six teams
and we are grateful to everyone who made it a success,” the association stated.
