Bengal made perfect use of the batting-friendly conditions at the MBB College ground in Agartala on the opening day of their Ranji Trophy match against Tripura on Saturday.

Sudip Gharami, promoted to open in place of the injured Sudip Chatterjee, made the most of the opportunity with a composed unbeaten 70 as Bengal reached 171/1 at the close.

Shakir Habib Gandhi too looked in good touch and was batting on an impressive 82 off 187 balls, which was studded with 11 boundaries.

The pair added 167 runs for an unbroken second-wicket stand to put Bengal firmly in control before bad light limited the day’s action to just 60 overs.

Tripura players took the field wearing black armbands to mourn the passing of former Ranji cricketer Rajesh Banik, who died in a road accident on Friday night.

Gharami’s 10th first-class half-century came in the 40th over. Except for one reprieve at slip, he looked solid throughout and found an able ally in Gandhi as the duo mixed caution with aggression.

Earlier, Bengal lost opener Kazi Junaid Saifi (0) in the second over, caught behind by Sentu Sarkar off Abhijit Sarkar, before the Gharami-Gandhi stand helped them take control.

Tripura skipper Manisankar Murasingh used as many as seven bowlers, but none could break the partnership.

Bengal were without regular captain Abhimanyu
Easwaran, who was on India A duty for the South Africa A four-day game in Bengaluru.

Wicketkeeper-batter Abhishek Porel is leading Bengal in his absence.

Brief scores: Bengal 171/1 in 60 overs (Sudip Gharami 70 batting, Habib Gandhi 82 batting) vs Tripura. At Stumps, Day 1.