Udaipur, March 31, 2025: These days, the world's biggest cricket league is being played in India. Experienced and young cricketers from around the world are competing in the Indian Premier League 2025. Meanwhile elsewhere, Scott Kuggeleijn from Northern Districts has set a special record in New Zealand's first-class cricket history. He scored a fifty in just 19 balls against Otago in the final round of the Plunket Shield 2024-25 in Dunedin. With this, he broke Andre Adams's 27-year-old record. Adams had scored a half-century in 20 balls for Auckland on his first-class debut against Otago.

Promoted to Open the Innings

Scott Kuggeleijn was promoted to open the innings for the first time by Northern Districts in the second innings. He put in a great effort to secure victory on the third day. He scored 71 runs off just 26 balls, hitting three fours and eight sixes at a strike rate of 273.07. Thanks to his explosive innings, Northern Districts declared their second innings at 140 runs in just 11 overs.

Northern Districts Close to Victory

Scott Kuggeleijn's aggressive batting has given Northern Districts a strong chance to win the Plunket Shield title. They now need only seven more wickets on the final day to secure victory. On the other hand, Otago is still 287 runs away from the target. By the end of the day's play, they had scored 120 runs for the loss of 3 wickets in 51 overs.

Kuggeleijn’s Impactful First Innings

In the first innings, Scott Kuggeleijn played a crucial knock, scoring 53 runs off 32 balls. His innings included six fours and three sixes. Northern Districts put up a strong total of 411/7 before bowling Otago out for just 145 runs. Interestingly, instead of enforcing the follow-on, they chose to bat again and set a massive target of 407 runs for Otago. Now, Northern Districts need to take seven more wickets to lift the Plunket Shield title.