Meghalaya spinner emulates Anil Kumble's 'perfect ten' in U-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy

Follow us on

Off-spinner Nirdesh Baisoya achieved a rare feat on Wednesday as he picked up all ten wickets in an innings while playing for Meghalaya against Nagaland in the first innings of a U-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy match. Baisoya, who is originally from Meerut and plays for Meghalaya as a guest player, returned stunning figures of 10/51 in 21 overs with 10 maidens as he sent Nagaland packing for just 113 on Day 1.

Speaking to IANS from Tezpur in Assam after the day's play, the 15-year old sounded elated. "It's yet to sink in. I was not born when Anil Kumble picked up 10 wickets, but I heard a lot about it. I always wanted to do something like that, never thought it would happen so early in my life. I just spoke to my parents and they became emotional as well."

Asked when he felt he could get all 10 wickets, he said: "I had picked six wickets by the first session. That is when I started to believe that I can go for all 10. My teammates backed me a lot. There was turn on the pitch since morning and the overhead conditions also helped."

This is Baisoya's second season in the U-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy and he already has 27 wickets in his bag from four matches. Last time, he had snared 33 wickets from six matches.

Youngest in a family of three sisters and two brothers, Baisoya said he wants to make his parents and siblings proud and is also looking forward to go back home and share his experiences especially of this spell. "It was a dream come true for me and I never expected this. I have to keep working hard as I have a long way to go. I am just 15. I want to make my family, sisters, brothers and parents proud," said the Ravichandran Ashwin fan.

"I try to learn a lot from Ashwin and I also like Nathan Lyon a lot," he said.

Baisoya has been in great form with the ball this season and snared 9/36 for Meghalaya across two innings as they defeated Mizoram by an innings and 22 runs in their U-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy plate group match in Golaghat on November 1.

But on Thursday he did what reminds every cricket fan of Kumble's heroics in that 1999 Delhi Test where he returned magical figures of 10/74 against Pakistan and helped India win by 212 runs.

Manipur fast bowler Rex Singh created history last year as the youngster became the latest bowler to accomplish the rare feat of taking 10 wickets in an innings.

The 18-year-old, who is a left-arm medium pacer, had returned with figures of 10/11 in the Cooch Behar Trophy with six out of his 9.5 overs being maidens. Before Rex, Sidak Singh, Puducherry's left-arm spinner, scalped 10 wickets against Manipur in the CK Nayudu Trophy last season.