The morale of the team is high after a convincing performance against Jharkhand in the quarter final. But Bengal are not over-confident. They are aware of the need to start afresh in their semi-final clash versus a disciplined Madhya Pradesh at the Alur Cricket Stadium (near Bangalore) beginning on Tuesday.
In the other semi-final, Mumbai face an upbeat Uttar Pradesh at the Just Cricket Academy ground. Madhya Pradesh have been quite consistent this season and Rajat Patidar is their X-factor. The batter had a successful IPL stint with Royal Challengers Bangalore. Bengal are aware of all that.
“Obviously, you frequently don’t come across games where your team has scored over 700 runs. But that’s history now and we need to re-focus and begin afresh.
“When you go into a new contest, you’re beginning from zero,” captain Abhimanyu Easwaran told The Telegraph on Monday. Senior batsman Manoj Tiwary’s knees, which were swollen after the quarter-final game, are in a much better condition now and he’s expected to feature in the semi-final.
The Alur pitch is drier and Bengal are set to play left-arm spinner Pradipta Pramanik in place of pacer Ishan Porel.
Bengal match starts: 9.30am, live on Star Sports 2
