India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has offered a bizarre assessment of Bihar’s world-record List A total against Arunachal Pradesh, calling the Plate Group fixture in the Vijay Hazare Trophy “not an ideal contest” even as he praised the batters involved.
Bihar created history in the 2025–26 Vijay Hazare Trophy by piling up a staggering 574 for 6 against Arunachal Pradesh, the highest team total ever recorded in List A cricket. Teen sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi headlined the onslaught with a sensational 190 off just 84 balls, while captain Sakibul Gani added to the carnage with a 128 off 40 deliveries, reaching his hundred in only 32 balls, the fastest by an Indian in List A cricket.
Suryavanshi’s innings was equally remarkable for its pace and power. The left-hander brought up his century in just 36 balls and finished with 16 fours and 15 sixes at a strike rate of 226.19, as Arunachal Pradesh struggled to contain Bihar’s batting. The mismatch was underlined further when Arunachal were bowled out for 177 in reply, handing Bihar a crushing 397-run victory.
While Ashwin applauded the extraordinary individual performances, he questioned the competitive value of such one-sided contests. Speaking on his YouTube channel, the veteran spinner pointed to the sharp gap in quality between certain teams in the Plate Group.
“Huge applause for Vaibhav Suryavanshi. But I again want to ask a question. There is a huge divide, chalk and cheese, in terms of quality with some teams. It becomes very lop-sided with some teams and there is no contest at all. It is not an ideal contest,” Ashwin said.
Ashwin was careful to add that landmark innings should not be discounted because of the opposition. “Credit to Vaibhav, if you get a big score in your neighbourhood, it is still a big score. A double hundred is a double hundred, anywhere,” he said. However, he also raised concerns about the long-term impact on developing teams. “If we are serious about teams like Arunachal Pradesh becoming good sides, what will this do to their confidence?”
Ashwin’s comments have reignited debate around the structure of domestic competitions and whether such extreme mismatches truly help teams aspiring to move from the Plate Group to the Elite tier.
