Bengal Makes Strong Comeback in Ranji Trophy Semifinal, Limits MP to 56/2 After Scoring 438 on Day 2

On the second day of their 2022-23 Ranji Trophy semi-final at Holkar Stadium, here on Thursday, a disciplined seam attack from Bengal reduced defending champions Madhya Pradesh to 56/2 at stumps after posting 438 in their first innings.

Abhishek Porel (51 off 102 balls), who resumed from 307/4, played a gutsy knock and was supported by veteran Manoj Tiwary, who scored 42 off 129 balls.

Madhya Pradesh had some hope of a comeback after losing Shahbaz Ahmed early in the day. Those hopes were dashed, however, when Porel combined with Tiwary to keep Bengal ahead with a crucial 78-run partnership.

Bengal collapsed after Tiwary's dismissal, losing their last five wickets for 37 runs. Left-arm spinner Kumar Kartikeya Singh was the pick of the bowlers for Madhya Pradesh, taking 3/95 in 36.3 overs.

In response, Yash Dubey and Himanshu Mantri of Madhya Pradesh were extremely cautious in front of the new ball. However, Akash Deep ended the 27-run opening stand by having Dubey caught behind off Akash Deep.

Mantri, on the other hand, was caught in the slips by Ishan Porel with three overs to go before stumps. Saransh Jain and Anubhav Agarwal remained calm in order to prevent further damage to Madhya Pradesh.

Brief scores: Madhya Pradesh 56/2 in 28 overs (Himanshu Mantri 23; Ishan Porel 1/4) trail Bengal 438 all out in 141.3 overs (Anustup Majumdar 120, Sudip Gharami 112; Kumar Kartikeya 3/95) by 382 runs