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Jharkhand took a giant stride towards advancing to the Ranji Trophy quarter-finals after posting a mammoth 769 for 9 against struggling Nagaland on Day 2 of their knock-out match at the Eden Gardens, in Kolkata, on Sunday.
17-year-old wicketkeeper-batter Kumar Kushagra made most of a listless Nagaland attack to steer his side to a huge total after Jharkhand resumed the day at 402 for 5.
Kushagra, who was 112 not out overnight, continued his onslaught on the Nagaland bowlers to slam 266 off 269 balls (37x4, 2x6) in his third first-class appearance. It was his maiden first class hundred.
The youngster, who was part of the India Under-19 team for the 2020 South Africa tour, got to 200 with a boundary off Lemtur just before lunch to complete the milestone off 213 deliveries.
Senior left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem also made hay, cruising to a career-best 123 not out (223 balls; 14x4, 1x6) as the duo put together 166 runs for the seventh wicket after overnight batter Anukul Roy was out for 59.
Looking unstoppable, Kushagra toyed with the tired Nagaland bowlers and got to his next 50 off just 39 deliveries.
Kense finally provided the breakthrough and dismissed Kushagra and Sushant Mishra (0) off four balls in a temporary respite.
After Kushagra's departure, Nadeem held centre stage with number 11 Rahul Shukla (29 not out) en route to his second first class century.
Nagaland employed seven bowlers, the spin duo of Imliwati Lemtur and Khrievitso Kense returning with three wickets each, while Shrikant Mundhe, Chopise Hopongkyu and Rongsen Jonathn claimed one each.
Brief Scores:
Jharkhand: 769 for 9 in 177 overs (Kumar Kushagra 266, Shahbaz Nadeem 123 not out, Virat Singh 107; Khrievitso Lemtur 3/138, Imliwati Lemtur 3/161) vs Nagaland.