Off-spinner Ramesh Powar is all smiles after the third day?s play. Picture by Santosh Ghosh

Calcutta: Bengal were badly hit by a Powar-trip on Monday and there is every chance of further darkness descending on their cricketing horizon on the final day of the Ranji Trophy Elite group A match against Mumbai.

Chasing Mumbai?s mammoth first-innings total of 552, the home team collapsed to 239 all out and were forced to follow on at the Jadavpur University?s Salt Lake campus ground.

Off-spinner Ramesh Powar plotted Bengal?s downfall, claiming seven for 55 with a disciplined effort.

In their second essay, the hosts were 14 with loss when stumps were drawn on Monday.

Coach Karsan Ghavri had wanted a disciplined effort from his batsmen. But what he got was a shameful display as his players dug their own grave on Day III.

Here is an example. Laxmi Ratan Shukla wanted to lift the very first ball he faced out of the ground and ended up offering a simple catch to Nishit Shetty at mid-off.

Sanjib Sanyal looked determined to teach the top order a lesson or two as he and Sourashish Lahiri staged a revival of sorts from a disastrous 110 for seven.

Seventy eight runs were added for the eighth wicket before Sanyal, too, committed harakiri.

The half-century landmark must have made him complacent and he perished in the very over Sairaj Bahutule decided to claim the second new ball. Ajit Agarkar pitched one short and Sanyal?s mistimed pull was gladly accepted at square-leg by Vineet Indulkar.

Patience, that precious quality needed to handle pressure, was only to be seen in Arindam Das. But during his flawless stay for over three hours at the crease, he saw other batsmen making a beeline towards the pavilion.

First to go was Nikhil Haldipur, serving up an easy catch at mid-wicket off Santosh Shinde. Powar took the centrestage thereafter and in a single spell, blew away the Bengal top-order.

Former India wicketkeeper Deep Dasgupta was caught at forward short-leg while Rohan Gavaskar offered no shot to a straighter one from Powar. The Bengal captain stood at the crease for quite some time before leaving.

Debutant Anustup Majumdar didn?t last long either, Powar managing to find a nick for Amol Mujumdar to claim it at first slip. Then came Shukla?s tryst with disaster and Bengal went in to lunch hanging precariously at 101 for five.

All this must have affected Das? focus as he failed to negotiate a Powar delivery and offered a catch at forward short-leg.

Das and Sanyal apart, only Lahiri showed the keenness to hang on and remained unbeaten on 53.