Arindam makes a dash

Opener remains unbeaten on 150 against Delhi on lifeless track; Bengal 313/2 on Day One

Delhi coach Manoj Prabhakar wouldnt have liked what he saw of either the pitch at the Ferozeshah Kotla or the figures on the manual scorecard at the far-end at stumps on Day One of the Elite Group A game against Bengal.

Two days ago,Prabhakar had expressed disappointment after getting a whiff of how the wicket would be bereft of grass. On Monday,as the Bengal batsmen piled on the runs and the Delhi medium pacers and lone frontline spinner Chetnya Nanda wilted,it turned into a forgettable day for the hosts. Bengal finished the day at 313 for two.

The man who made the most out of the situation was Bengal opener Arindam Das,who toiled on a wicket on which the odd ball kept extremely low. During his 238-ball stay,which touched 387 minutes,Das,at least for the time being,removed the uncertainty that has marked his future over the past year or so.

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Last year,he was ignored from the probables list and then dropped ahead of the one-dayers,but as usual Das put his head down and made runs and found his way back into the squad.

In a Bengal line-up that includes skipper Manoj Tiwary,Das has often not got his due in spite of playing as an opener. That said,his average,just a shade below 35,also means he hasnt always done full justice to the opportunities available to him at the top of the order.

Using the opportunity

On Monday,Das made full use of the conditions,which was largely determined by a benign wicket,to play out a patient and potentially match-changing innings. Bengal under new coach WV Raman and Tiwary are trying to rebuild in the post-Sourav Ganguly,Deep Dasgupta and Rohan Gavaskar-era and Dass unbeaten century was just what the team needed on the first day of the Ranji opener.

Mondays effort meant the world to Das. He added 133 with fellow opener Shreevats Goswami,70 with Abhishek Chowdhury and had added an unbeaten 110 with Tiwary when play was called off.

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I would rate this as a special knock. There was a lot of pressure after last season,more so since I was not initially picked and then wasnt the first choice for one-dayers. But this is a great way to start off the season, Das said.

Delhis bowlers didnt help their cause by bowling 13 no-balls. Skipper Mithun Manhas had to bowl 16 overs of off-spin for the two wickets to fall on the day,while Nanda,the only spinner included in the squad was guilty of bowling seven no-balls and had nothing else to show for the day. Left-arm paceman Pradeep Sangwan also bowled five no-balls to add to the hosts woes.

Brief scores: Bengal 1st inngs 313/2 (Arindam Das batting 150,Shreevats Goswami 68; Mithun Manhas 2/47) vs Delhi