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29-year-old Chinmay Sutar left Mumbai to join Mizoram to make his first-class debut. Dismissed run out for 99 on debut in the Ranji Trophy 2026-27 Plate Group, Sutar entered the list of legends in his second first-class appearance. Sutar became only the second batter to score a quadruple century in the tournament’s history. But what makes his 400 not out unique is not the number of deliveries or the fours and sixes he hit; it is the unbeaten partnership for the 10th wicket that lasted 46.1 overs. Sutar did not just keep the strike to himself. No.11 batter Lalrempuia Chhakchhuak faced as many as 76 balls and scored 14 runs during the 189-run partnership against Nagaland bowlers.
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After the day's play, Sutar revealed that he set small goals with his partner. When the ninth wicket fell, he was batting on 231. So, he was not thinking too far ahead and just asked the tailender to hold on, which he did successfully for well over a session of play.
“I told my partner that we will try to do small-small partnerships. 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,” Chinmay told The Indian Express.
Batting at no.3, Sutar played a total of 517 deliveries. He hit 46 fours and seven sixes during his stay at the crease. Sutar's unbeaten 400 and Lalrempuia's resistance helped Mizoram post 581/9 in 154.1 overs before declaring. But did Chinmay imagine himself scoring a 400 even in his wildest dreams, or even when the Mizoram tailender showed resilience?
“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 focused 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.
Nagaland had two chances to dismiss Chinmay. When he was batting on 44, he got an early reprieve. He was caught off a no-ball as well.
Who scored the previous 400 in the Ranji Trophy?
Before Chinmay, there was only one batter with a quadruple century in Ranji Trophy history. In 1948, Bhausaheb Nimbalkar scored an unbeaten 443 for Maharashtra against Kathiawar in Pune. Nimbalkar never made his Test debut, but he averaged nearly 48 in first-class cricket with 4,841 runs from 80 games featuring 12 tons and 22 fifties. He also took 48 wickets.
Before Sutar, batters who came closest to a 400 in recent times were Mumbai's Prithvi Shaw (379 vs Assam), who now plays for Maharashtra, and Hyderabad's Tanmay Agarwal with 366 against Arunachal Pradesh.
Batters with 400 or more in a first-class innings
Overall, Sutar became the 10th batter to score 400 or more in first-class cricket history. He has entered the list headed by Brian Lara with a 501 not out for Warwickshire against Durham in 1994. Other batters are Pakistan's Hanif Mohammad and Australia's Don Bradman. India's Nimbalkar, Australia's William Ponsford, Pakistan's Aftab Baloch, England's Archie MacLaren, Sam Northeast and Graeme Hick. Lara and Ponsford are the only batters who have achieved the feat twice. Lara holds the record for the highest score in a Test innings with a 400 not out against England in 2004.
Promising talent but not good enough for Mumbai red-ball team yet
Sutar made his first-class debut for Mizoram, but he has featured for Mumbai in white-ball cricket. He was part of the Mumbai team that faced Oman in 2021. Earlier this year, he made his Vijay Hazare Trophy debut against Maharashtra. In 2019, he had represented the India Emerging team as well, scoring 132 runs, including a century, against Hong Kong. In addition, he has represented Mumbai's Under-23 and Under-25 sides too.
“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.
Sutar represented MSC Maratha Royals in T20 Mumbai 2026. He was the fifth-highest run-scorer of the season. In six innings, he scored 212 runs at an average of 42.40 and a strike rate of 119.77, including two half-centuries. In the final, he scored 52-ball 61 before getting retired out. Siddhesh Lad-led MSC Maratha Royals beat ARCS Andheri by eight runs in the final.
Who is Sutar’s idol?
Chinmay is the son of former Mumbai batter Rajesh Sutar. Rajesh was known for hitting the ball out of the park. While Chinmay has played alongside the greats of Mumbai cricket who have represented India, he considers his father his idol. He credited his father for pushing him when he felt low. He wanted him to continue fighting when the odds were not in his favour.
Rajesh played seven first-class and 30 List A games for Mumbai. From seven first-class games, he scored 168 at an average of 33.60. He did not score a fifty. In white-ball cricket, he scored 753 runs from 28 innings at an average of 28.96, featuring two tons and four fifties. He took five wickets in red-ball cricket. But he was a handy off-spinner in white-ball cricket, taking 26 wickets at an average of 31.03, including a four-fer.
Sutar’s current goal
Going forward, Chinmay has one goal. He wants to help Mizoram advance to the Elite stage of Ranji Trophy in the next edition.
At the end of Day 2's play, Nagaland were 57/1, having lost their opener Akamu Sumi, for a seven-ball duck. Mizoram have a big lead in their favour and would look to register a comprehensive win over Nagaland, their first of the season.
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