Panaji: Goa fought hard for a draw against Tripura on the fourth and final day of their Cooch Behar Trophy match at the picturesque Panjim Gymkhana ground here on Monday.
Set a target of 300 runs, Goa, who had taken the crucial first-innings lead, adopted the safety-first approach and ended up with 201/5 off 80 overs in their second innings.
Nisarg Nagvekar remained not out on 42 runs (130 balls; 4×5) and giving him company till the end was wicketkeeper Chittem Jeevanakumar with 30 runs (91 balls; 4×7).
Earlier, Tripura declared their second essay at the crease on 334/9 which included a fine unbeaten century by Saptajit Das (101 runs). Goa’s Shivank Desai (3/27), captain Pundalik Naik (2/71) and Yuvraj Singh (2/115) were amongst the wickets.
Goa got off to a solid start with Shaantanu Nevagi and Veer Yadav stroking their way to 78 runs partnership in 20 overs. Just when it looked like the hosts were creating a launchpad with positive cricket to set out on a successful chase, Veer was dismissed after scoring 35 runs which included five boundaries and two sixes.
Shaantanu was the next man to be out at the team total of 113, trying to cut a widish delivery only to edge it to the slip fielder after scoring 52 runs (113 balls; 4×7).
Yash Kasvankar (22), Dishank Misquin and Darpan Pagui were out cheaply as the hosts were reduced to 137/5 in 52.5 overs. That is when C Jeevanakumar joined forces with Nisarg and forged a match-saving sixth-wicket unfinished partnership of 64 runs, batting together for 27.1 overs.
With the Indian domestic cricket action in the men’s category returning to the historic ground at Panjim Gymkhana after a long gap of over a decade, the cricket lovers in the Capital city were pleased and hoped that the iconic venue on the bank of River Mandovi will host regular fixtures of the BCCI tournaments every season.
Brief scores: Tripura 180 & 334/9 decl.; Goa 215 & 201/5 (Toss won by Goa, Match Drawn).
