Bengal did bounce back fast in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy with a four-wicket win over Services the other day. But all is not well in the Bengal camp.

The problem centres around Ashok Dinda and his fitness. No one spoke officially on this matter, but according to sources, there’s discontent in the camp and that is related to the senior-most pacer’s place in the side.

According to sources, Dinda had an exchange of words with coach-cum-mentor Arun Lal, who isn’t too happy with the pacer’s fitness, and the matter threatened to snowball into a “something very serious.” Other members of the support staff, though, brought the tense situation to control.

“Dinda was initially told he wouldn’t be playing Monday’s match versus Jammu and Kashmir with Ishan Porel coming in as his replacement. That didn’t go down well with him, which led to the heated exchange of words,” said one source.

However, late in the evening, it was learnt that everything was sorted out and there were possibilities of Dinda being part of the XI alongside Porel.

After the team selection and even before the squad departed for Jaipur, Lal had categorically mentioned he had issues with Dinda’s fitness. Bengal cannot wear Dinda out before the Ranji Trophy, Lal had cautioned.

“Even now in terms of skill, determination and will, he (Dinda) is special. But fitness-wise, I don’t know whether he is at 100 per cent... There is concern over his fitness,” Lal had said.

In the two matches so far against Gujarat and Services, Dinda’s economy rate was on the higher side. He did take three wickets against Gujarat, but conceded 58 off nine overs.

Against Services, he gave away 55 off seven and went wicketless. So, performance-wise too, he hasn’t been outstanding at all.

But again, his experience is massive for Bengal and given his skill set, he could still go on to be the team’s go-to man during crises .

Captain Abhimanyu Easwaran’s return would also be a boost for Bengal against an unpredictable team like Jammu and Kashmir.