Ranji Trophy final, Bengal vs Saurashtra Highlights: SAU 81/2 at Stumps in first innings, BEN bowled out for 174

That's it for the day! End of Day 1 as Saurashtra trail by 93 runs!

Saurashtra: 81/2 (17), Tral by 93 runs, end of Day 1

Harvik Desai: 38*(51)

Chetan Sakariya: 2*(9)

Bengal: 174 (54.1)

Bowled'em! Gohil drags one back onto his stumps. He was in two minds there, whether to leave, whether to play and by the time he made his mind, it was too late. The ball caught the inside half of his bat and crashed onto his off stump. Akash Deep with the breakthrough for Bengal. He is pumped. 

Saurashtra 38/1, Bengal 174 all out

Saurashtra opners Jay Gohil and Harvik Desai gave a flying start by hitting a flurry of boundaries.

Unadkat gets the last wicket, Ishan Porel is out. Bengal all out for 174. It has been a complete bowling performance from Saurashtra. It started off with a brilliant opening spell by Unadkat and Sakariya. They ran through Bengal's top-order. The hosts faught back with half-centuries from Shahbaz Ahmed and Abhishek Porel but once the partnership was broken was D Jadeja, it was one-way traffic again.

Edged and gone! Chirag Jani gets rewarded for his just putting it in the correct line and length. Porel, moments after getting his fifty, has a go at it, gets and outside edge to the keeper.

Bengal 9 down for 174.

FIFTY for Abhishek Porel! Sliced away behind square on the off-side for a single, brings up his 6th First-Classh half-century. A fighting knock from the young wicketkeeper-batter. He is definitely one for the future for Bengal.

Wickets at both the sides of the session for Dharmendrasinh Jadeja. A nothing shot from Akash Deep. It was a length delivery, he went for a hoick and ended up providing a simple catch to mid on.

OUT! A huge wicket just at the stroke of Tea Saurashtra. Bengal were just having the perfect session but Dharmendrasinh Jadeja has removed Shahbaz Ahmed off the last ball of his over. Shahbaz goes for 69. He decided to take the review but unlike Porel's case, this time the decision stayed out. The 101-run partnership has been broke.

Bengal 166/7

DRS comes to Porel's rescue! The third umpire was quick to judge that Porel got some bat on it. He must thank his stars there. There was a little murmor on the snick when the ball was close to the bat and third umpire said it was enough for him to overturn the LBW decision against the left-hander. 

Bengal 161/6

One of the backfoot off left-arm spinner Dharmendra Jadeja, the next one of the front of medium pacer Chirag Jani. Abhishek Porel is showing his range in front of his home ground. Bengal slowly but surely getting into a decent poistion after a disastrous start.

Bengal 143/6

FIFTY for Shahbaz Ahmed! Gets there with a boundary. Cometh the hour, cometh the man. A terrific innings under pressure from the all-rounder. Bengal were tottering at 34/5 when he walked out to bat but he did not let the situation get the better him. He stayed positive, kept the scoreboard ticking, put the bad ones away and got to a superb half-century. He has hit 11 boundaries so far. The job, however, is far from being over. He needs to stay there as long as possible.

Bengal 129/6 after 42.5 overs

50 partnership comes up between Shahbaz Ahmed and Abhishek Porel. This is absolute gold for Bengal considering the situation they were in. They are still long way away from putting a respectable first innings but Porel and Ahmed have made sure Saurashtra have soemthing to think about. 

Bengal 120/6

Shahbaz Ahmed joins the party. One boundary off Prerak Mankad in the fifth delivery of the last over and then another backfoot punch off Unadkat as Bengal cross 100. This is a good counter-attack from the two left-handers.

Abhishek Porel hits three boundaries of Jaydev Uandkat. The first one was a bit streaky. Unadkat induced an outside edge but thankfully for Porel and Bengal, it went right between the slips and the gully. The next two shots from the left-hander, however, were of pure class. He flicked one off his pads and hit drove Unadkat straight down the ground.

Play resumes after Lunch on Day 1. Prerak Mankad starts the proceedings for Saurashtra. Abhishek Porel and Shahbaz Ahmed are carrying Bengal's hopes of a revival.

India all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed, who survived a close catch appeal, is fighting a lone battle for Bengal. The left-hander has looked positive and is now Bengal's only hope for putting up a respectable total. He has wicketkeeper Abhishek Porel for company. Bengal reached 78/6 at Lunch on Day 1.

There was another brief partnership between Shahbaz Ahmed and Akash Ghatak with the former coming out with a positive intent but Sakariya came back to dismiss Ghatak for 17. The left-arm pacer picked up this third wicket of the innings.

Just when it was looking like Bengal's rescue man Anushtup Majumdar was at it again, all-rounder Chirag Jani forced a poor shot from the veteran right-hander. He flashed a delivery outside off stump and got an outside edge to the keeper. Bengal lost half their side for 34 as Majumdar walked back for 16.

Saurashtra captain Jaydev Unadkat and Chetan Sakariya made the new ball by reducing Bengal to 17 for 4 after opting to bowl first. Unadkat removed Abhimanyu Easwaran and Manoj Tiwary while Sakariya got rid of Sudip Gharami and debutant Sumanta Gupta.

Saurashtra won the toss and opted to bowl first against Bengal in the Ranji Trophy final 2023 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.  

Bengal Playing XI: Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sumanta Gupta, Sudip Kumar Gharami, Anustup Majumdar, Manoj Tiwary(c), Shahbaz Ahmed, Abishek Porel(w), Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar, Ishan Porel, Akash Ghatak

Saurashtra Playing XI: Harvik Desai(w), Jay Gohil, Vishvaraj Jadeja, Sheldon Jackson, Arpit Vasavada, Chirag Jani, Prerak Mankad, Parth Bhut, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Jaydev Unadkat(c), Chetan Sakariya