Shillong, Oct 18: Kevin Christopher made a century in only his second first-class match (and first on home turf) as Meghalaya began their Ranji Trophy 2026-27 plate group game against Manipur at the MCA Ground here today.
Manipur won the toss and chose to field but Meghalaya batted well to post 325/6 at stumps.
Opening the batting, Kevin, who graduated to the senior team this season after working hard in the age group levels for Meghalaya in previous years, made 110 in a near-flawless innings of 125 deliveries.
Kevin made his Ranji debut last week in Sikkim where Meghalaya batted just once and the youngster made just 1 run. Kevin put the disappointment of that behind him today to hit 14 fours and 5 sixes. He made 147 in the opening partnership with Arpit Bhatewara, who made 54 (81 balls, 8x4s, 1×6).
Manipur broke the opening stand by removing Bhatewara in the 30th over, with Kevin following in the 38th. From there Manipur enjoyed a little more dominance, with Kishan Lyngdoh out for 15 and guest professionals Ajay Duhan and Rahul Dalal out for 18 and 20 respectively.
The hosts were then 226/5 but Meghalaya rebounded with a 96-run stand by Swastic Chettri and Jaskirat Singh Sachdeva. The latter fell just before stumps for 29 but Swastic remained unbeaten on 63 (101 balls, 10x4s), with Ram Gurung (1 not out from 13) at the other end.
Having endured a draw against Sikkim last week, this positive start against Manipur will give Meghalaya added confidence as they search for victory.
