Calcutta, Nov. 29 :    Calcutta, Nov. 29:  Bengal open their Ranji Trophy campaign against Assam at the Eden Gardens tomorrow on anoptimistic note, hoping the new season will usher in positive results. The visitors, on the other hand, will be playing their second match this season, having already bagged five points by virtue of their first innings lead against Bihar. The arrival of Woorkeri Raman as coach will be one of the important factors in shaping Bengal's fortunes this season. The squad is expected to be in good shape after more than two months of physical conditioning and nets. 'The fielding should improve,' said Raman after nets today. Bengal have decided to leave out Ranadeb Bose and Shabbir Ali from the XIV. Wicketkeeper Humza Ferozie and Arindam Das, who will be making his debut, will open the innings followed by Nikhil Haldipur, Rohan Gavaskar and Saikat Mukherjee. Devang Gandhi, though, will be a doubtful starter, a 'back niggle' keeping him out of practice for the last couple of days. 'I have been under medication and will only decide tomorrow morning,' Devang said of the chances of his playing. If Devang is unavailable, Safi Ahmed will find a berth in the playing XI. The three-pronged pace attack will be led by Shib Shankar Pal and Laxmi Ratan Shukla along with another debutant, Sanjib Sanyal. The team also expects some runs from Sanyal. But it will be left to the guiles of the experienced Utpal Chatterjee and the young Sourashish Lahiri to make the most of the slow turner on offer. With very little grass on the track, the pacers will find the going tough, though the early morning moisture could come in handy for seam bowling. 'A good wicket to bat on,' Rohan said today. The Bengal skipper is hoping to bat first, put up an imposing total and put Assam under pressure. However, the visitors will be no pushovers. The side has been boosted by the presence of former India A and Mumbai player Manoj Joglekar along with Tamil Nadu recruits medium-pacer Gokulakrishnan and off-spinner S.R. Ganesh Kumar. The presence of veteran left-arm pacer Gautam Datta and left-arm spinner Sukhvinder Singh will also add sting to the attack. 'We will be aiming for five points,' skipper Subhrajit Saikia said. TEAMS BENGAL (likely): Humza Ferozie, Arindam Das, Nikhil Haldipur, Devang Gandhi/Safi Ahmed, Rohan Gavaskar, Saikat Mukherjee, Sanjib Sanyal, Utpal Chatterjee, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Shib Shankar Pal, Sourashish Lahiri. ASSAM (likely): Subhrajit Saikia, Parag Das, Zakaria Zufri, Manoj Joglekar, Pabitra Datta, Sumit Ranjan Das, Sukhvinder Singh, Gokul Krishna, Ganesh Kumar, Gautam Dutta, Orland Connor.