Bengal beat Delhi by nine wickets in Ranji Trophy opener as Sumanta Gupta breaks the game open

Bengal open Ranji Trophy campaign with nine-wicket win over Delhi

Bengal made a winning start to their Ranji Trophy campaign, beating Delhi by nine wickets in their Elite Group 'C' clash at the Bengal Cricket Academy (BCA) ground in Kalyani on Wednesday. Bengal finished with six points, while Delhi returned empty-handed and have plenty to ponder.

Bengal coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla had shown quiet confidence at the end of Day Three on Tuesday, when Delhi needed 88 more runs with seven wickets in hand to make the hosts bat again, with the aim of preventing an outright Delhi win. The bowlers delivered on that promise.

Sumanta Gupta makes the difference

On a day when seven wickets fell to spin, it was the lesser-known Sumanta Gupta who made the difference. Easwaran turned to Gupta for the last over before lunch, and the part-time off-spinner produced the breakthrough with his second delivery of the match. Yash Dhull stretched forward, the ball bounced up and hit his pad, and the ball then looped off his gloves into the hands of wicketkeeper Abishek Porel.

Delhi's middle order resists before collapsing

Delhi made a good start on the final day, with Ayush Badoni and Anuj Rawat seeing off the tricky first hour. Bengal drew first blood when Rawat was bowled attempting an unnecessary reverse sweep off Aamir Gani. Dhull, who had retired hurt the previous evening, returned to give his skipper support, and the pair started to rebuild the innings.

The major jolt came when left-arm spinner Pradipta Pramanik had in-form Badoni (85) caught at first slip by Easwaran. The Delhi tail offered some resistance before the innings folded for 277 in the extended second session, just before the tea interval.

Hosts fall short of maximum points

Bengal chased 89 runs for victory. The hosts were guilty of missing out on maximum points (7) after opener Ankur Paul was caught by Dev Lakra off Hrithik Shokeen while going for a big shot. Paul had made 38 before his departure. Easwaran (34 not out) and Sudip Gharami (16 not out) took the side home in 15.3 overs.

Delhi had been in trouble earlier in the match. Bengal had built a big first-innings lead, and Delhi's batting had struggled to keep pace. For the hosts, the result is a confidence-boosting start to a Ranji campaign that began with a loss of Kalyani's home advantage in last season's semifinal against champions Jammu & Kashmir.