Ranji Trophy 2025: Nagaland fight back through Nischal’s unbeaten 161 and Lemtur’s maiden century after Gurjapneet’s Day 2 hat-trick rattles Tamil Nadu

Nagaland flexed great skills as their batter fought hard all day to reach 365 for 5, frustrating Tamil Nadu, who had hoped to enforce a follow-on after scoring a huge 512 in their first innings in the Ranji Trophy Group A clash on Day 3 of the play. 

Gurjapneet Singh went wicketless

Earlier on Day 2, Tamil Nadu left-arm pacer Gurjapneet Singh had left Nagaland reeling at 150 for 4, picking all the wickets, including a hat-trick that reduced them to 3 for 9 early in the innings. But on Monday, opener Dega Nischal and middle-order batter Imliwati Lemtur struck superb centuries to keep Tamil Nadu in the game.

Nagaland's fearless batting

On a flat batting-friendly surface, overnight batter Nischal, who resumed on 80 not out, carried on to make an unbeaten 161 from 350 balls with 24 fours. Veteran batter Lemtur also showed experience, batting with patience and grit, scoring 115 not out off 203 balls with 17 fours and three sixes. Their unbroken 205-run partnership for the sixth wicket helped cut Tamil Nadu’s lead to 147 runs going into the final day.

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Their partnership will surely be on Tamil Nadu captain Sai Kishore’s mind, as Nagaland now have a real chance of matching or even surpassing Tamil Nadu’s big total if they continue to play like this on the last day of the play. 

TN spinner  DT Chandrasekar managed to get a single wicket

Gurjapneet, who recently played for India A against Australia A in Kanpur unable to add wickets to his tally. Apart from left-arm spinner DT Chandrasekar, who took the only wicket of the day, the rest of Tamil Nadu’s bowlers struggled to make an impact.

The only wicket to fall on Monday was that of Yugandhar Singh, who added just nine runs to his overnight 58 before being dismissed for 67 by Chandrasekar. His 129-run fifth-wicket stand with Nischal on Sunday had steadied Nagaland after Gurjapneet’s early burst.

Both Nischal and Lemtur batted with great patience, focusing on playing each ball on merit and avoiding risky shots.

For Lemtur, this was a special moment; the 31-year-old left-arm spinner scored his first-ever first-class century in his 43rd match. His previous best was 61, and his batting average was just above 13.

Brief scores:

Tamil Nadu 1st innings 512/3 decl in 115 overs vs Nagaland 365 for 5 in 127 overs (Dega Nischal 161 not out, Yugandhar Singh 67, Imliwati Lemtur 1115 not out; Gurjapneet Singh 4/34).