Bengal go into their Ranji Trophy semi-final clash on Sunday with the advantage of home conditions as well as momentum on their side, as they face off against Jammu and Kashmir in Kalyani.
Bengal’s batting tends to choke and wobble in crunch games, but they have been a little more consistent this season, and not having to rely entirely on senior pro Anustup Majumdar. So, if they have to exercise caution in this phase of their campaign, it’s only against complacency.
Jammu and Kashmir are first-timers in the Ranji semi-final. Their batting is a tad shaky and certainly not one of their strong suits. But their bowling, led by a raring-to-go Auqib Nabi, is very much capable of causing damage.
Bengal do need to keep that in mind. “J&K are a good side, so there’s no room for complacency at all. It will be a competitive game,” head coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla said on Saturday, the eve of the semi-final.
The onus is also on No.3 Sudip Gharami to maintain his consistency, especially since his 299 in the quarter-final.
With the Bengal Cricket Academy ground pitch likely to turn into a good batting wicket as the game progresses, Bengal are set to stick with their bowling combination of quicks Mohammed Shami, Akash Deep and Mukesh Kumar, alongside seamer all-rounder Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, while spin duties will be carried out by all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed.
The other semi-final is in Lucknow, between Uttarakhand and Karnataka.
