Ritwik Roy Chowdhury and Akash Deep rose to the occasion as Bengal bounced back in style after a defeat in their Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy opener.

In less than 24 hours after losing to Maharashtra, Bengal registered a comprehensive 29-run win over Rajasthan in Tuesday’s Group D clash at Mohali.

Put into bat, Bengal posted a challenging total of 172/7, thanks largely to Ritwik Roy Chowdhury’s unbeaten 51 off 32 balls. Thereafter, pacer Akash (3/29) made early inroads and was ably assisted by fellow quick Ishan Porel (3/20) as Bengal restricted Rajasthan to 143/9.

Another loss would have made it virtually impossible for Bengal to make the knockout stage. However, Roy Chowdhury ensured to get those runs at a critical stage and that too, against the likes of Deepak Chahar, Rahul Chahar and Khaleel Ahmed — all three with Team India and IPL experience.

Bengal were struggling at 102/5 in the 13th over. But then, Roy Chowdhury executed his shots to perfection that propelled Bengal past 170.

Brief scores: Bengal 172/7 in 20 ovs (R. Roy Chowdhury 51 n.o.; K. Ahmed 3/41). Rajasthan 143/9 in 20 ovs (A. Deep 3/29). Bengal won by 29 runs.