Bengal was on track to defeat Uttar Pradesh in their Ranji Trophy Group-A encounter on Thursday at the Eden Gardens thanks to an unbroken 95-run stand between Koushik Ghosh and Anustup Majumdar. Bengal scored 156 for two at stumps on the last day after Uttar Pradesh, starting from an overnight total of 122 for four, ended its second innings at 227 and set a goal of 257.
In order for the host to win by a margin of 101 runs on the last day. Bengal started off well and maintained a decent run rate on a surface that appeared flattered over its five available sessions. Koushik and Sudip Gharami played with assurance after Abhisek Das was dismissed in the third over, adding 43 runs for the second wicket.
In the fourteenth over, Gharami poked Mavi and then left. Anustup (44 batting, 88b, 6×4) and Koushik (69 batting, 121b, 10×4), two seasoned left-handed openers, made light of their wounded hands by batting responsibly and helping Bengal win the match. They rotated the strike smartly and picked the loose deliveries to get boundaries.
After being dropped twice, a determined Koushik displayed his strokes on either side and scored his third half-century. Anustup, a frequent savior, demonstrated his disciplined play and gave the home team hope. Earlier, the overnight undefeated duo of Akshdeep Nath (53, 71b, 7×4, 1×6) and Rinku Singh (89, 113b, 12×4) fought doggedly to establish a 102-run connection.
When Nath reached his 50th, Akash Deep made the game-changing catch as he hooked straight to deep fine-leg. After scoring his second consecutive half-century of the game, a single-minded Rinku continued to assist Uttar Pradesh in setting a respectable target. The eighth wicket to go was the southpaw, who sliced Pritam Chakraborty to third man.
The combined efforts of the Bengal bowlers prevented the Uttar Pradesh second essay from lasting through the opening session.
The results:
First-inning score for Uttar Pradesh: 198
Bengal: 169 in the first inning.
In the second innings for Uttar Pradesh, Madhav Kaushik was bowled by Akash for 19, Aanjaneya Suryavanshi by Ishan for 4, Priyam Garg by Ishan for zero, Karan Sharma by Mandal for five, Rinku Singh by Chakraborty for 89, Akshdeep Nath by Mandal for 53, Shivam Sharma (not out) for 26, Aaqib Khan by Chakraborty for seven, and Ankit Rajpoo Extras (6, in 65.3 overs): (lb-3, nb-1, w-2)
Fall of wickets: 1-6, 2-6, 3-27, 4-40, 5-142, 6-159, 7-183, 8-185, 9-197
Bengal bowling: Ishan 19-3-70-2, Akash 19.3-2-52-3, Chakraborty 13-1-48-2, Mandal 8-0-24-2, Shahbaz 6-1-30-1
Bengal – 2 nd innings: Abhisek Das c Priyam b Mavi 9, Koushik Ghosh (batting) 69, Sudip Gharami c Priyam b Mavi 22, Anustup Majumdar (batting) 44, Extras (b-4, lb-7, nb-1) 12, Total (for two wickets in 42 overs) 156