Bengal players remain hopeful

Kolkata: It will be an anxious wait for 14 players from Bengal who have made it to the final players’ auction list. Although many from the state have made IPL squads in the past, apart from Sourav Ganguly, Wriddhiman Saha, Mohammad Shami and Manoj Tiwary, none could actually leave a mark on that stage. With two more sides in this edition’s IPL, they will surely fancy their chances.
While India pacer Shami will once again hog the limelight from Bengal, this auction can prove significant for Saha.It is being speculated that the wicketkeeper-batter has fallen out of reckoning for a national side berth, which led the Siliguri boy to opt out of this season’s Ranji Trophy. Saha will be keen to utilise the IPL platform to show he still has fire in the belly. The auction can also provide a lifeline to another wicketkeeper Shreevats Goswami who was recently dropped from the Bengal squad.
Middle-order batter Tiwary makes a return to the auction pool, this time in a new avatar as a state minister. The former Bengal skipper did well for Kolkata Knight Riders and Rising Pune Supergiants, apart from representing Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab.
Bengal skipper Abhimanyu Easwaran can also hope for an IPL stint after establishing himself as a contender for a national berth.
Bengal players in fray:
Mohammad Shami, Wriddhiman Saha, Shahbaz Ahmed, Shreevats Goswami, Ritwik Roy Chowdhury, Writtick Chatterjee, Sudip Chatterjee, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Mohammad Kaif, Manoj Tiwary, Prayas Ray Barman, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep, Ishan Porel.