Saurashtra’s Cheteshwar Pujara and Ravindra Jadeja at the Eden on Sunday. A Telegraph picture

Calcutta: For the last couple of seasons, choosing the coach for the Bengal team has been one of the major headaches for the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB).

Since Paras Mhambrey vacated the post, the state association has struggled to hire the right person for the job.

But the bewildering bit of fact is that never has the CAB pondered about getting the services of the man who has turned an average side into commendable opponents. Debu Mitra, who is a former coach of the state, has been a silent crusader in the domestic circuit. He was instrumental in guiding Saurashtra to the semi-finals of the Ranji Trophy for the last two seasons. And that’s quite an achievement if one considers the fact that the West Zone side didn’t even qualify for the elite division when Mitra took over the job in 2004-05.

When asked if he would like to take the mantle of his home state, Mitra’s spontaneous reply was, “Why not?”

“This is my state. This is place where I played and where I started my coaching. Given all the years I have been associated with cricket in Bengal, it’s quite obvious that I would like to do something for Bengal. But I haven’t been offered anything,” said the 61-year-old.

Asked if he didn’t get any offers from the other states, Mitra revealed that he did get a couple but they weren’t good enough for him to leave Saurashtra.

Speaking on the likes of India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and talented Cheteshwar Pujara, Mitra said: “They are talented. The only thing they lacked was a proper coach. I have always tried to fill that gap and they respect me a lot.”

Singling out Pujara as a special talent, he claimed: “Pujara, at present, is perfectly fit to play for India. Whether he gets a chance is a different issue, but he is ready.”