High-flying Bengal holds all the aces against Andhra

A strong bowling attack and a fine track record at home should give Bengal an edge over Andhra Pradesh when the two unbeaten sides lock horns in a Ranji Trophy quarterfinal clash at the Bengal Cricket Academy (BCA) ground here on Friday.

Bengal recorded five outright wins, including three at home, on its way to top Group-C with 36 points, while Andhra secured four clear victories to manage a second-place finish in Group-A after tying with two others on 31 points.

The BCA ground, which saw Bengal nearly beat Assam and then outplay Services, has served the host well. The Abhimanyu Easwaran-led side will hope to continue with its fine run on the picturesque venue.

Bengal will rely on its international pace attack, comprising Mohammed Shami (27 wickets), Akash Deep and Mukesh Kumar, along with gentle medium pacer Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, who can serve as a handy lower-order batter. Left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed, an international all-rounder who is Bengal’s top wicket-taker (35) and fourth highest run-scorer (363), will provide balance to the side.

The bowlers’ success has helped Bengal take 20 wickets five times this season.

Sumanta Gupta (425), Sudip Chatterjee (417), Abhimanyu (372), Anustup Majumdar (358) and Sudip Gharami (352) present loads of experience in the batting department.

For Andhra, Abhishek Reddy (582), Shaik Rasheed (523) and K.S. Bharat (369) have contributed heavily with the bat. It explains why the team has collected two 500-plus and as many 470-plus aggregates. The capability of captain Ricky Bhui and all-rounder Nitish Reddy cannot be undermined.

Left-arm spinner Saurabh Kumar (30), off-spinner T. Vijay (23) and pacer K. Saiteja (21) are the tourists’ leading wicket-getters.

While a sporting track is expected to treat batters and bowlers alike, the progress of the contest will tell who capitalises on the conditions better.