Last Update: February 10, 2023, 19:59 IST
Akash Deep continues his impressive form with the ball (Twitter/@BCCIDomestic)
Akash Deep shocked Madhya Pradesh’s recovery act by taking two wickets in two balls overnight led by batsman Saransh Jain (65).
Bengal pacer Akash Deep bowled a game-changing five-wicket haul to put his team in the driver’s seat against defending champions Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy semi-final here on Friday.
Akash Deep (5/42), who played a key role in the quarterfinal win over Jharkhand, surprised Madhya Pradesh’s recovery led by overnight batsman Saransh Jain (65), taking two wickets in two balls.
He uprooted Jain’s off-stump and in the very next ball got Kumar Kartikeya lbw to breathe life into a weak Bengal attack, which also featured Ishan Porel and Mukesh Kumar.
He took his fourth five-wicket haul in first-class cricket, dismissing Avesh Khan, before Madhya Pradesh were bowled out for 170 when their No. 11 batsman Gaurav Yadav was run out.
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Bengal took a huge lead of 268 runs in the first innings but skipper Manoj Tiwary did not follow on.
Bengal ended the third day at 59 for 2 with a total lead of 327 runs at the close of the final.
The two-time Ranji champions last reached the final in 2020 where they lost to Saurashtra.
Bengal has not won the Ranji Trophy since 1989–90.
Like the first innings, the opening pair of Abhimanyu Easwaran (19) and Karan Lal (17) departed in quick succession.
The first innings century pair of Sudeep Gharami (12 runs) and Anustup Majumdar (9 runs) had two more days left at the crease.
Earlier, night watchman Anubhav Agarwal added just two runs by giving one run to Mukesh Kumar, moving the score to 56 for two.
At the other end, Akash Deep cleaned up Rajat Patidar for a duck, while left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed dismissed MP skipper Aditya Srivastava (7) as half his side were bundled out for 89.
Venkatesh Iyer looked to hit back and hit Akash Deep for a six, but he became Ahmed’s second victim.
But the left-right combination of Jain and Shubham Sharma (44 not out) resisted Bengal with a determined 54-run partnership.
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Jain made full use of the rest on 37 to bring up his half-century as both looked comfortable.
But after being brought back into the attack in the post-lunch session, Akash started to collapse.
Brief scores: Bengal: 438 for 2 in 29 overs and 59 vs Madhya Pradesh 170 in 79 overs (Saransh Jain 65, Shubham Sharma 44 batting; Akash Deep 5/42, Shahbaz Ahmed 2/30). Bengal has a lead of 327 runs.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)