Former Bengal stars put faith in young side

KOLKATA: Bengal made back-to-back Ranji Trophy finals in 2006 and 2007, but lost to Mumbai and Uttar Pradesh respectively. Rohan Gavaskar and Deep Dasgupta have sad memories of those matches. As Bengal entered yet another final on Tuesday, the two former cricketers hoped the team would cross the line this time.
Although Gavaskar avoided superlatives to describe the Bengal bowling, he spoke highly about the unit."The bowling unit is exceptional. The three medium-pacers were the stars of this game, but don't forget Shahbaz (Ahmed) who is one of their leading wicket-takers this season. So it puts the opposition in a quandary about what sort of a pitch to prepare to stop this Bengal attack," he said.
In spite of the Bengal batting unit not clicking this season, Gavaskar was optimistic. "Yes, it seems they are struggling at the moment, but they are quality players. You can always hope that they will come good," he said.
The former batsman also praised the team camaraderie and felt that has helped the side overcome tough situations. "I remember the way Ishan Porel jumped out of his chair when the umpire declared a delivery that had dismissed Anushtup (Majumdar) as no-ball. It was wilder than how he (Porel) celebrated his five-wicket haul. That tells you the story of this side this season," he said. "I think this team has come out of a hole a number of times, which will give them a lot of confidence," he added.
Dasgupta, who was the Bengal skipper on both occasions, had a simple advice for this side. "They should take it as another game and not get overawed," he said about the final.
The former India wicketkeeper believes this young side's lack of experience will not be a factor in the summit clash. "Pressure will be there when you are playing a Ranji final. It is true that experience comes handy in handling such situations. But at the same time exuberance is important which these boys have in plenty," he added. "Controlling emotions and having a balanced approach will be key."
Dasgupta is hopeful that the support staff will help the boys in this aspect. "It's not the players only but the whole team management that handles such pressure situations. I feel if you have Arun Lal (coach), Ranadeb Bose (bowling coach), Utpal Chatterjee (spin bowling consultant), Jaydeep Mukherjee (manager, cricket operations) in the dressing room, who are been-there-done-that type of persons, things will fall in place," he stated.