Mohammed Shami’s industrious four-wicket haul and captain Abhimanyu Easwaran’s unbeaten half-century helped Bengal turn around a dreary Ranji Trophy Group-C match on the final day and begin its campaign with an emphatic eight-wicket win over Uttarakhand at the Eden Gardens here on Saturday.
Starting from 165 for two, Uttarakhand was all out for 265 in its second innings. Chasing 156, Bengal achieved the target comfortably to gather six points.
On a slow pitch with the old ball, an inspired Shami, resuming from his overnight three-over spell, bowled six more tidy overs and got a major breakthrough by trapping Uttarakhand skipper Kunal Chandela (72, 235b, 8×4) leg before in the 10th over of the day.
Bengal’s Abhimanyu Easwaran, left, and Mohammed Shami celebrate after winning the Ranji Trophy match against Uttarakhand, at the Eden Gardens, in Kolkata, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
PTI
The script changed dramatically after Bengal took the second new ball in the 82nd over and secured five more wickets by lunch. Bhupen Lalwani, Shashwat Dangwal and Jagadeesa Suchith fell in 83rd, 84th and 85th overs respectively with Ishan Porel taking two and Akash Deep one.
Yuvraj Choudhary (35, 33b, 6×4, 1×6) and Abhay Negi (28, 23b, 5×4) counterattacked, forging a 49-ball 64-run stand, as Akash received some special treatment.
Shami broke the stand by having Negi caught at third-man. Soon, Suraj Jaiswal removed Yuvraj, who was held spectacularly by Akash on the straight boundary.
Bengal’s Mohammed Shami bowls during the fourth and last day of the Ranji Trophy match against Uttarakhand, at the Eden Gardens, in Kolkata, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
PTI
In the post-lunch session, Uttarakhand’s innings lasted for four deliveries, as Shami claimed two-in-two. For his match haul of seven wickets, Shami was named the player-of-the-match.
The Bengal batters showed a positive intent, scoring at an average of 5.32 runs per over, to put pressure on the visitors. Abhimanyu (71 not out, 82b, 6×4), who cut, drove and flicked for his fours and ran well between the wickets, gathered 51 runs with Sudip Chatterjee and 76 with Sudip Gharami (46, 47b, 5×4, 1×6) to set the stage for Bengal’s Diwali celebrations.
“The fire in the boys propelled us to the win,” said Bengal coach L.R. Shukla.
The scores: Uttarakhand — 1st innings: 213.
Bengal — 1st innings: 323.
Bengal’s Ishan Porel celebrates after taking the wicket of Uttarakhand’s Jagadeesha Suchith during the fourth and last day of their Ranji Trophy match at the Eden Gardens, in Kolkata, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
PTI
Uttarakhand — 2nd innings: Avneesh Sudha c Chatterjee b Akash 1, Prashant Chopra lbw b Bhati 82, Kunal Chandela lbw b Shami 72, Bhupen Lalwani c Abishek b Ishan 22, Shashwat Dangwal c Shami b Akash 6, Yuvraj Choudhary c Akash b Jaiswal 35, Jagadeesa Suchith b Majumdar b Ishan 1, Abhay Negi c Akash b Shami 28, Janmejay Joshi lbw b Shami 4, Devendra Bora (not out) 7, Rajan Chaudhary b Shami 0; Extras (b-1, lb-5, w-1): 7; Total (in 96.4 overs): 265.
Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-147, 3-173, 4-188, 5-188, 6-189, 7-253, 8-253, 9-265.
Bengal bowling: Shami 24.4-7-38-4, Akash 19-3-79-2, Ishan 17-3-63-2, Jaiswal 22-6-40-1, Bhati 14-1-39-1.
Bengal — 2nd innings: Sudip Chatterjee b Negi 16, Abhimanyu Easwaran (not out) 71, Sudip Gharami c Chopra b Rajan 46, Vishal Bhati (not out) 16; Extras: (lb-5, w-2): 7; Total (for two wickets in 29.3 overs): 156.
Fall of wickets: 1-51, 2-127.
Uttarakhand bowling: Bora 8-1-37-0, Rajan 5-0-20-1, Negi 5-1-31-1, Janmejay 4-0-24-0, Suchith 3.3-0-17-0, Avneesh 4-0-22-0.
Bengal won by eight wickets.
Published – October 18, 2025 06:06 pm IST
