Arunachal forfeits Ranji opener as Nagaland heads home; doubts also linger over next fixture

The Narendra Modi Stadium sports a deserted look as both teams were not present at the ground for their Ranji Trophy fixture. | Photo Credit: VIJAY SONEJI

In an ideal situation, Nagaland would have taken the field at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday morning for its Ranji Trophy Plate Group fixture against Arunachal Pradesh. Instead, the team was on its way to the airport, preparing to return home.

With Arunachal Pradesh forfeiting the match after failing to field a team amid a legal tussle within the Arunachal Cricket Association (ACA) — a development first reported by Sportstar — Nagaland decided against spending four days in Ahmedabad for a match that was never going to take place.

Under normal circumstances, a team is expected to be present at the ground, even when as a match is forfeited if the opposition fails to turn up at the scheduled time for the toss. This time, however, the BCCI had informed the stakeholders in Ahmedabad that the fixture would not go ahead because of the ongoing crisis within the Arunachal association prompting Nagaland, too, to not turn up at the venue.

BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia had earlier told Sportstar that the dispute between two factions within the ACA had brought cricketing operations to a standstill, leaving the state unable to select its teams or prepare for the domestic season.

“Because of the internal bickerings between the two factions, there is litigation and a stay order regarding the functioning of the association. As a result, nobody could take up the matter of team selection or preparation,” Saikia had said.

Six district cricket associations — Lower Siang, Upper Subansiri, Kamle, Tawang, West Siang and Papum Pare — have alleged violations of rules and procedures in the conduct of the ACA executive elections and demanded a re-election. The matter is currently being heard by the Gauhati High Court’s Itanagar Bench.

The BCCI has previously appointed committees to oversee cricketing operations in state associations, including those in Bihar, Rajasthan and Jammu and Kashmir, following court directions. In Arunachal Pradesh’s case, however, the ongoing litigation and the absence of a court-appointed administrator have left the governing body unable to intervene.

While this was the first time in 17 years that a Ranji Trophy game was forfieted, doubts also persist over Arunachal Pradesh’s participation in its next fixture, against Sikkim next week, unless the the legal impasse within the state association shows any signs of an immediate resolution.

Published on Oct 11, 2026

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