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Manipur vs Sikkim Final: One Win From Glory for Unbeaten Manipur U19 Girls
Cricket · Women’s U19 T20 Trophy Plate · Final preview
Manipur vs Sikkim Final: One Win From Glory for Unbeaten Manipur U19 Girls
Four matches, four wins, 34 wickets and a seven-wicket win over Sikkim just two days ago. Manipur U19 Women walk into Sunday’s final at Judges Field, Guwahati, as the side to beat.
A Northeast final: Manipur v Sikkim.
The Manipur vs Sikkim final will decide the Women’s U19 T20 Trophy Plate on Sunday 18 October at Judges Field, Guwahati, and Manipur U19 Women arrive unbeaten. They have won all four of their matches, beat Sikkim by seven wickets in the league phase on Friday, and have not let a single opponent past 102 runs.
The Manipur vs Sikkim final: a Northeast showdown
The Manipur vs Sikkim final is listed on the BCCI match centre for Sunday 18 October at Judges Field, Guwahati, with a start of 3:00 am UTC, which is 8:30 am IST. It is a Northeast final, with two of the region’s smaller cricket associations meeting for the Plate trophy in a five-team tournament played in Guwahati.
The two sides have already met once. On 16 October, in Match 15 at the same ground, Sikkim made 102/6 and Manipur chased it down with 103/3 in 15.5 overs, 25 balls to spare. Sunday is a clean slate, but it is the freshest evidence either camp has.
Why Manipur are favourites in the Manipur vs Sikkim final
A perfect record, built on big margins. Manipur beat Tripura by 74 runs, Nagaland by eight wickets, Meghalaya by ten wickets and Sikkim by seven. Three of the four wins came while chasing, and none went to the last over.
The bowling is the weapon. Opponents have been bowled out or held to 67, 53/9, 77/9 and 102/6. Nonibala took 3 for 13 against Tripura and 3 for 1 against Nagaland, and Rabina Khundrakpam took 4 for 8 against Nagaland. Barkatun Alam took 3 for 9 against Meghalaya, and Thokchom Puni Devi has 3 wickets of her own across the tournament.
The captain is in form. Taniya Ningthoujam, the captain and wicketkeeper, made an unbeaten 56 off 36 balls against Tripura and an unbeaten 14 off 8 against Nagaland. She also had a hand in four of the ten Tripura dismissals, behind the stumps.
The Manipur vs Sikkim final
Four wins. Thirty-four wickets. Not one opponent past 102.
How Manipur reached the Manipur vs Sikkim final
| Match | Opponent | Opponent total | Manipur | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6, 10 Oct | Tripura | 67 (16.3) | 141/3 (20) | Won by 74 runs |
| 8, 12 Oct | Nagaland | 53/9 (20) | 54/2 (6.1) | Won by 8 wickets |
| 12, 14 Oct | Meghalaya | 77/9 (20) | 78/0 (9.0) | Won by 10 wickets |
| 15, 16 Oct | Sikkim | 102/6 (20) | 103/3 (15.5) | Won by 7 wickets |
Did Manipur rest key players before the Manipur vs Sikkim final?
Manipur’s seven-wicket win on 16 October came with a changed team, but not a wholesale one. The scorecards show four changes from the XI that beat Meghalaya two days earlier. Alice Thokchom, Sumeiya, Rabina Khundrakpam and Thokchom Puni Devi sat out, and Robeni, Rahamatun, Lingjen and Bijjiya Khundrakpam came in. Seven players, including captain Taniya Ningthoujam, Creety Moirangthem, Barkatun Alam, Kebriya and Nonibala, played both games.
The rested names matter. Rabina took 4 for 8 against Nagaland and Puni Devi is the left-arm option, so two of the bowlers who shaped earlier wins were out. Manipur still held Sikkim to 102/6.
Sikkim, by contrast, played close to their strongest side. Their XI on 16 October was the same as the one that beat Meghalaya by 74 runs on 10 October, except for one change: Chebong replaced Kritika. Captain Khusi Kuikel, openers Rachna Pandey and Snika Tamang, Namreeta Rai, Pema, Diksha Chettri, Martha, Carol Tamang, Rachal Rai and wicketkeeper Prakriti all played. We compared only these two Sikkim games; the line-ups for their matches against Nagaland and Tripura were not checked.
The result is a useful signal going into the Manipur vs Sikkim final. Sikkim, at close to full strength, lost to a Manipur side missing four regulars, and if Rabina, Puni Devi, Sumeiya and Alice return on Sunday, Manipur will have more to call on, not less.
The numbers behind Manipur’s unbeaten run
Before the Manipur vs Sikkim final, the numbers are clear, but the BCCI match centre does not publish a tournament-wide leaderboard for the Plate, so these leaders are taken from the scorecards of Manipur’s four matches, and Sikkim’s two games we checked.
| Category | Player | Figures |
|---|---|---|
| Most runs | Taniya Ningthoujam | 106 in 3 innings, all not out (74 balls) |
| Highest score | Taniya Ningthoujam | 56* (36) v Tripura |
| Most wickets | Nonibala | 8 (3/13, 3/1, 2/16, 0/16) |
| Best figures | Nonibala | 3/1 v Nagaland |
| All-rounder | Barkatun Alam | 40* (28) and 3/9 v Meghalaya |
On Sikkim’s side, captain Khusi Kuikel has been the standout. She made 47 not out off 19 balls against Meghalaya, with eight fours and a six, and 34 not out off 31 against Manipur. Martha took 3 wickets against Meghalaya. Sikkim also won their game against Tripura by only two runs, while Manipur beat the same side by 74.
What Sikkim bring to the Manipur vs Sikkim final
Sikkim are not here by accident, and the Manipur vs Sikkim final will test them. They beat Meghalaya by 74 runs on 10 October, making 128/2 against 54/8, and edged Tripura by two runs on 12 October. Their only losses came against Nagaland by 51 runs on 9 October, and against Manipur on Friday. They can score quickly when Khusi Kuikel gets going.
The question for them is the new ball. Sikkim made 102/6 on Friday, with Rachna Pandey taking 17 balls to score 3, and Manipur’s bowlers have been taking wickets early all tournament. Manipur’s own weakness has been a slow start with the bat: they were 55/2 after 10.1 overs against Tripura before the innings took off, and Robeni and Barkatun Alam used 38 balls for 23 runs on Friday.
Can Manipur make history in the Manipur vs Sikkim final?
A win in the Manipur vs Sikkim final would give Manipur U19 Women the Plate and a place in the state’s cricket history. Manipur have never won this tournament. A victory on Sunday would be the first title in the competition for Manipur’s women, and it would come from a squad that has not lost a game. Sikkim will be just as hungry.
Three things to watch in the Manipur vs Sikkim final
1. The first six overs. Early wickets from Nonibala and Rabina have decided Manipur’s games. If Sikkim’s openers see off the new ball, the final tightens.
2. The toss. Manipur have chased three times and won all three, by 8 wickets, 10 wickets and 7 wickets. Whether they choose to chase again will show how they read Judges Field.
3. Taniya Ningthoujam. A captain who scores quickly and keeps wicket affects the game in two ways, and Sikkim will need a plan for both.
