Discarded India batter Prithvi Shaw's second outing with the bat for Maharashtra did not quite go the way of his first.
The youngest Indian to score a century on Test debut, Shaw's career has been on a downward trend over the past few years, culminating in his axing from the Mumbai team halfway through the last domestic season.
Ahead of the 2025-26 domestic season, Shaw moved to Maharashtra in a bid to get his career back on track, and he was promptly included in the team's squad for the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament, which serves as preparation for the domestic season.
Maharashtra were fielding first after Chhattisgarh won the toss on day one (August 18) of the teams' opening game at the Guru Nanak College grounds in Chennai. Chhattisgarh were bowled out for 252, before Shaw walked out to open the batting alongside Sachin Dhas on the morning of day two.
He dominated the opening stand of 71 in 19.2 overs, which ended with the dismissal of Dhas for 10. Maharashtra soon slipped to 86-4, but he remained standing. Shaw eventually made it to a century off 122 deliveries, and when he was dismissed for 111, the team score read 166-6.
Prithvi Shaw falls for one in Maharashtra's run-chase
Maharashtra ended up all out for 217, before left-arm spinners Vicky Ostwal (5-33) and Hitesh Walunj (5-67) scythed through Chhattisgarh on a helpful wicket, to knock them over for 149, giving Maharashtra a victory target of 185.
In the second over of the chase, Shaw came down the wicket to spinner Shashank Tiwari, only to york himself and see his leg stump pegged back for one, in sharp contrast to his lone hand in the first innings.
At lunch on day three, Maharashtra had reached 18-1 in six overs, needing another 167 to win in two sessions.
Image credit: YouTube / TNCA
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