Maharashtra put Bengal under pressure by reducing them to 76/4 on Wednesday at Eden Gardens. Rain affected the Ranji Trophy clash, allowing only 27.5 overs of play on Day III. Bengal holds a slim one-run lead, as Maharashtra bowlers took quick wickets to gain control of this important group match.
Ranji Trophy: Bengal vs Maharashtra. (PTI Photo)
KOLKATA: Weather continued to play spoilsport as Maharashtra enjoyed an upper hand in the Ranji Trophy Elite Group ‘C’ clash with Bengal at Eden Gardens here on Wednesday. The visitors will fancy their chances after reducing Bengal to 76/4 in the second innings, overall just one run ahead of Maharashtra’s first-innings total of 218, at stumps on Day III. Only 27.5 overs were bowled in the three hours and 16 minutes of play on the penultimate day which started after the whole first session was washed out due to rain. Maharashtra enjoyed a 75-run lead after their first innings ended in the fourth over of the morning, with 11 runs added to their overnight total of 207/9, when overnight unbeaten Pradeep Dadhe was trapped in front by Mohammed Shami for 27. Tanay Sanghvi remained unbeaten on 60 that came off 179 deliveries with the help of three boundaries and one six. Shami finished with 4/37 while Shahbaz Ahmed took 3/39. The Bengal second innings unfolded much like their first essay, with skipper Abhimanyu Easwaran the first to depart, chasing an away-going ball from Dadhe and being caught by wicketkeeper Saurabh Nawale in the fifth over of their innings. Sanghvi was in the thick of action when he bagged Sudip Gharami and Sudip Chatterjee in a gap of three deliveries to reduce Bengal to 25/3 just five overs later. Gharami played one on the rise and was caught at gully by Digvijay Patil for 12 while Chatterjee was trapped in front trying to play across the line without scoring. Opener Ankur Paul and Abishek Porel were involved in a 49-run fourth-wicket stand but did not look very convincing as Maharashtra skipper
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Prithvi Shaw set up an attacking field. The ploy did pay dividends as Paul was caught at silly point by Patil off left-arm spinner Hitesh Walunj for 32. Suraj Singh Jaiswal joined Porel as the duo was able to erase the deficit when bad light once again stopped play at tea after an extended second session of play. An outright win for Maharashtra will help them join Bengal at the top with 18 points while Bengal will look to save the match and return with one point, which will keep them as the sole leaders of the group.