da bet7k： Bengal’s hope of making it to the quarter-finals of the Ranji Trophytook a back seat as Mumbai bundled them out for 117 only to take afirst innings of lead of 65 runs
14-Mar-2000Bengal’s hope of making it to the quarter-finals of the Ranji Trophytook a back seat as Mumbai bundled them out for 117 only to take afirst innings of lead of 65 runs. As a result, Bengal will get onlythree points from this match if it ends in a draw. That would taketheir tally to 16 and if Karnataka manage a first innings lead againstDelhi then it would also make their tally same. In that case, lastyear’s champions will qualify as they have one outright victoryagainst Bengal’s none.However, as far as a draw is concerned, it is a distant proposition inthis match. On a pitch where the ball is jumping and turning square itwill require tremendous technique and courage to survive even a fullday. Mumbai failed to do it in the first innings and the Bengalbatsmen were no exception today. Except for skipper Utpal Chatterjeewho was the highest scorer with 27 with a fractured right thumb andRohan Gavskar (23) none of the other batsmen were able to cross15. Mumbai in their second innings were 102 for the loss of AmolRane’s wicket.Even though there was appreciable turn for the bowlers it wasslow. However, the Bengal batsmen were not ready to play a waitinggame. Devang Gandhi, who was the main hope for the home side perishedearly on, falling leg before to Abey Kuruvilla. He made the mistake ofgoing back to a ball which he should have played forward to. Gavaskarbatted against his father’s team with a lot of grit. His 23 came in120 minutes. However, both he and Srikkanth Kalyani got out trying tocut balls that they could have well avoided. For Mumbai, Kuruvillatook three wickets while Nilesh Kulkarni, Rajesh Pawar and RomeshPowar finished with two wickets apiece.Whatever hopes Bengal had of making a comeback were dashed byJaffer. He is unbeaten with 64 of 97 balls. Of the 12 boundaries thathe has so far struck, seven have been hit off Chatterjee. The Bengalleft-arm spinner looked a demoralised bowler today. Maybe, theperformance of his batsmen had influenced his bowling. Mumbai now arein a very healthy position leading by 167 runs with nine wicketsremaining.