The Khadoos in Sutar: How Mumbai shaped a historic 400
Having played through Mumbai's Under-23 and Under-25 ranks, Chinmay Sutar carried the city’s famed appetite for long innings into Mizoram colours, scoring a quadruple century in only his second first-class game
There were about 500 people for Nagaland’s home Ranji match against Mizoram at the Nagaland Cricket Stadium in Sovima, near Dimapur, on Monday. By the end of play, they had witnessed a piece of history in Indian domestic cricket — a batter had scored 400 for the first time in 78 years. Yet, it was unlikely that any of them would have realised the enormity of the milestone.
One can hardly fault the spectators though. Even the protagonist of it was blissfully oblivious to its significance. “While I was batting, I had no idea. After we declared the innings at 581 for nine, I got to know,” Chinmay Sutar, a 29-year-old cricketer from metropolitan Mumbai rather than the backwaters of the Northeast, told Cricbuzz after his 517-ball marathon effort.
Sutar (400 not out) joined Bhausaheb Nimbalkar, who had scored unbeaten 443 for Maharashtra against Kathiawar in Pune in 1948-49. Sutar made it to an elite list of 10 players to hit a quadruple century in the first class cricket world over. It was only his second first class game, having made debut in last week’s season-opener versus Manipur.
Sutar was born in Thane, but lived his whole life in a small village called Chinchani, which is in Palghar district near Mumbai. He represented Mumbai in this year’s Vijay Hazare Trophy and was also part of Maratha Royals squad in Mumbai T20 early in June.
“My dream was to play for Mumbai, but it couldn’t come true. So, I am really grateful and very happy that I got the chance to play the Ranji Trophy for Mizoram,” said Sutar, who felt one has to be extremely fit to score a quadruple hundred. “I have been working really hard to stay fit. I think fitness plays a major role in an athlete’s life. Habits such as maintaining a proper diet and training regularly are important. I think that’s why I was able to score 200, 300 and 400 runs today.”
Scoring big is not new to Sutar. His highest score prior to this was 213, notched a couple of years ago in the local Mumbai League called Young Comrade Shield Cricket Tournament representing the Cricket Club of India (CCI). Last year, in an A division game representing Mumbai Customs, he had hammered 170 in a Times Shield match. Still, a first class score of 400 can be an outlier.
“I think it takes a lot of sacrifice to score 400. A lot of discipline, you know, and focus. It requires a lot of focus,” Sutar said reflecting on the innings which put him in an elite list of 10 players to hit a quadruple century in the first class cricket world over. “I’m glad I could make it. I had the best recovery after yesterday (the first day of the game). I’m really thankful to our team’s physio and trainer. They helped me recover and kept me fit.”
Now working for Bank of Baroda, Sutar has played alongside the likes of Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Tushar Deshpande and Shardul Thakur, among others. Current Mumbai skipper Siddhesh Lad, known for his long, patient innings, leads Sutar at Maratha Royals in the Mumbai T20 League and must have rubbed off on him in the right way. He has of course inherited the typical Khadoos Mumbai characteristic from his cricketing upbringing.
“I just thought I needed to stay at the crease for as long as possible because I knew that if I stayed there, the runs would come easily. So, that is what I did, and I’m glad I could do it. I think I learned that from Mumbai. I have been playing since I was a kid, since school cricket. I have always played red-ball cricket, so that (Khadoos) attitude will always be there.” Sutar played for Mumbai in Under 23 and Under 25 age groups. He even captained Mumbai in four Under -23 games.
He sees a hungry bunch in the Mizoram team. “It’s really different from Mumbai, but I think the Mizoram boys are really good. I can see the hunger in them to improve as players and as individuals. I think it’s a really great team. We have a good bunch of lads. It’s a very young team, and I think cricket is developing and growing here. It’s good to see.”
