Batsman Saha proves a point

While Wriddhiman Sahas glovework has been of high quality,the same cannot be said about his batting. On Friday,however,the gritty keeper left a huge impression with the bat at Eden Gardens. His unbeaten 167 292 b,26215;4,1215;6 didn8217;t just go a long way in changing the common perception about him,it also put Bengal in control of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group B match against Gujarat. At stumps Gujarat were 10/0 after Bengal had declared their innings at 560/6.

The day had started with Manoj Tiwary returning to the pavilion after adding just 12 to his overnight score of 120. The second new ball was moving in the air and off the pitch and that made things tougher for the batsmen. Had Saha not put his head down,there was a chance that Bengal might have lost their way. Though,he got a half-chance in the 90s,his fifth first class century saw to it he stayed in contention for the second wicket-keeper8217;s slot for Australia.

The credit for Bengal8217;s domination must also go to Laxmi Ratan Shukla,who hit a quickfire 78. Shukla8217;s aggression helped Saha play his natural game. After Shukla was dismissed,Sourashis Lahiri ensured that the run rate never dipped and he remained unbeaten on 71 from 114 balls.

As Parthiv Patel walked out to open the Gujarat innings,he was in a familiar situation. He had to once again help his team out of the hole they found themselves in. Explaining how tough the final two days of game will be Patel said,8221;It8217;s very difficult to keep wickets for so long and then come back to open the innings. But I have done this at the top level. The wicket still is very good and we will take it session by session.8221;

Brief scores: Bengal 560/6 decl in 172 overs W Saha 167,M Tiwary 132,P Panchal 2/41 vs Gujarat 10/0 in 6 overs Parthiv Patel batting 8,P Panchal batting 1