At one of the oldest port cities of the country, Bengal will be out to right the ship in the fourth round of the Ranji Trophy, starting Saturday.
Coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla’s boys, still wounded from the draw against Tripura, square off against Railways in an Elite Group C fixture at Surat’s Lalbhai Contractor Stadium next. That one slip-up saw the table-topper drop to third, behind Haryana and Services.
The side’s list of unavailable players has only grown. Wicketkeeper-batter Abishek Porel, who had been chosen to fill regular skipper Abhimanyu Easwaran’s shoes ahead of the previous game, is presently at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru after being named in the ACC Rising Stars Asia Cup squad. Sudip Gharami will hence lead the side, with Shakir Habib Gandhi set to wear the gloves.
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India pacer Mohammed Shami, having gone wicketless in the previous game, flew back to Delhi on Wednesday. Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal is slated to replace him in the 11.
The duel will be fought on a conventional red-soil wicket that wears a faint green stubble—one could expect true bounce and carry on the first two days before the surface breaks down to accommodate the spinners.
And this is where the experience of leg-spinner Karn Sharma could come in handy for Railways, which is yet to win a game. Although he has claimed only two wickets thus far, the conditions at this venue may hold the key to a reversal of fortunes.
As he watched his skipper, Pratham Singh, bat in the nets on Friday, Railways coach Santosh Saxena said he is wary of the threat Bengal poses. He said, “They are a talented bunch with an excellent bowling unit that will look to utilise the pitch here. Luckily, we don’t have any injuries. We are ready for the challenge.”
Published on Nov 07, 2025