KOLCUTTA: A red-hot Bengal will have an opportunity to claim their first Ranji Trophy title in over three decades when they face Saurashtra, bolstered by the return of pacer and domestic game heavyweight Jaydev Unadkat, in the summit clash here from February 16.

Both the teams are set to cross swords in a Ranji final again, this time at Eden Gardens, a venue where Bengal had won their last Ranji Trophy way back in 1990. It’s not that Bengal have been under-performing. They have been on an upward curve since the 2019-20 season, making it to the semifinals three times on the trot.

They have played two finals in this period. In between, the 2020-21 season was abandoned because of COVID-19 pandemic. ONUS ON BENGAL BATTERS: By his standards, Bengal’s batting mainstay Abhimanyu is yet to come out on top form this season in crucial matches and he would hope to give his best in the final.Veteran Anustup Majumdar has been Bengal’s crisis man and the leading scorer for them with 790 runs, while it would be another test of character for the 23-year-old Gharami.

SAURASHTRA’S X-FACTORS : For the visitors, the two left-arm pacers in domestic veteran Unadkat and Chetan Sakariya would be their X-Factors.Unadkat, who led Saurashtra to the Ranji title in 2020 and the Vijay Hazare triumph this season, was released from the national team and he would look to swing it in his team’s favour. Unadkat made it clear that Bengal can’t just walk away with their pace bowling strength on the Eden green-top pitch.

GreenTop Pitch for the Bengal-SAU Ranji Trophy Final

Ranji Trophy Semifinal: Bengal to Meet Defending Champion MP