Calcutta: If T20 cricket is about seizing the moments, Bengal failed miserably in that aspect on Sunday and that contributed to their 17-run loss to Baroda in the Super League-cum-knockout stage match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy.
Set a target of 150, Bengal suffered a dramatic collapse that saw seven of their batsmen failing to reach double digits. Sreevats Goswami provided the lone resistance, making 58 off 43 balls before being run out while going for a non-existent run.
The hosts will have to win their remaining three matches and hope Baroda lose at least one to harbour hopes of making the title round.
"We need to play sensible cricket... We gave away some 30-odd runs and that proved to be crucial. We surrendered three wickets to the spinners and that was a crime in these seaming conditions," admitted Bengal captain Manoj Tiwary.
"We need to restrict the opposition below 130... Also, our shot selection wasn't too good and we must rectify the mistakes."
Manoj came up with a strange excuse while highlighting the reasons behind the defeat. "Another factor that looks to be playing on the minds of some of the youngsters is the live telecast factor. Some of these guys are a bit tense and that has contributed to their failure," Manoj commented.
If that has indeed contributed to the loss is a matter of conjecture, but there can be no denying the superb efforts of Baroda's Krunal Pandya and Lukman Meriwala.
Krunal, the brother of India cricketer Hardik, showed good control and discipline during his four-over spell. <>He claimed three wickets with his slow left-arm spin and more importantly, kept the batsmen tied to their crease.It was probably too much to expect a miracle from the likes of Pramod Chandila and Kanishk Seth. If Seth had to be promoted in the batting order, he should have in at No.3 or 4 to perform the role of a pinch hitter to perfection.
If there was a silver lining in Sunday's loss, it was Bengal's fielding. Besides a superb caught and bowled effort by Mukesh Kumar to dismiss Krunal, Writtick Chatterjee took a brilliant diving catch in the deep to dismiss Deepak Hooda off Sayan Ghosh's bowling.
