Published: Dec 07, 2017, 05:10 PM (IST)
Edited: Dec 07, 2017, 05:10 PM (IST)
In the first quarter-final of Ranji Trophy 2017-18, Gujarat had Bengal under the pump. At 59 for 4, Bengal were on the mat. While Ishwar Chaudhary was in top form with the red cherry, opener Abhimanyu Easwaran’s hundred kept Bengal on course. He staged the recovery courtesy a 175-run stand with Anustup Majumdar. Nonetheless, the duo fell before stumps to handover the advantage to Gujarat.
Chaudhary’s early breakthroughs caused enough ruckus in Bengal’s camp. They were reduced to 44 for 3 in no time. Abhishek Raman and Shreevats Goswami perished owing to wicket-to-wicket lines. In addition, Chintan Gaja got the better of skipper Manoj Tiwary (1). However, what followed changed the script completely.
Easwaran looked in no discomfort from the beginning, and found an able partner in Majumdar. The pair scored at a good rate and enforced regular bowling changes. Easwaran struck boundaries consistently and brought his hundred in the final session. He lost Majumdar when the latter was six short of a century. The duo’s partnership, however, led to the resurgence of Bengal.
Bengal would have hoped for one of their settled batsmen to remain unbeaten. At 261 for 6, their lower order needs to take them close to 325-350 to pose a threat in front of Gujarat’s batting-heavy lineup.
Brief scores
Bengal 261 for 6 (Abhimanyu Eswaran 129, Anustup Majumdar 94; Ishwar Choudhary 3 for 44, Chintan Gaja 2 for 75) vs Gujarat.
