Internet Desk: A confident Bengal led by Manoj Tiwary will take on Andhra Pradesh in their opening encounter of Vijay Hazare Trophy on Saturday in Chennai.
Having played very well in shortest format of the game, Bengal looks ready to carry on their momentum in the 50 overs challenge where batting in the middle over will decide the fate of the match.
Skipper Manoj Tiwary said, “We have enough experienced players who can bat well in the middle order. We have included Anustup (Mazumder) in the squad. He is an important cog in the team, whose experience will come into play.”
“We have played well recently and we have almost the same team that topped the Zonal T20 tournament and also won the Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy as East Zone. It is an advantage for us. We will try to carry our winning momentum. We are a good side consisting of young talents who proved themselves on many occasions. We just need to believe in ourselves and capitalize on our strengths.”
About the pitch, he said, “It looks a good batting surface. But the spinners will get an advantage in these conditions. We have the experience of Pragyan Ojha and Aamir Gani who can be the key factors in the match.”
Among the other batsmen, Sudip Chatterjee, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Debabrata Das, Pankaj Shaw have all shown great performance in the ongoing CAB local tournaments and are expected to add values to the team.
Debabrata scored one triple ton and two double hundreds, Pankaj Shaw hit 413 in a match, the highest this session in CAB’s local league.
Also, Anustup played some good cricket in the local league, scoring two double hundreds in critical situations which saved his team from defeat.
On the other hand, the seam bowling department will be lead by the veteran Ashok Dinda, backed by Sayan Ghosh and Mukesh Kumar, both in very good form.
“You need to have faith in your players for them to perform. Today we had a good practice session but tomorrow will be important. To get a winning start in any tournament gives you natural a boost. I believe we should stick to the basics and not be over confident. Anything is possible in cricket. Only what gets important here is how you perform in the match day,” Manoj Concluded.