RANJI TROPHY PREVIEW: Depleted Bengal rely on Sourav; Irfan Pathan looks to make the most of his comeback

“It will be nice if someone asks the Pathan brothers not to hit too many sixes” — a tongue-in-cheek Sourav Ganguly said after sweating it out at Eden Gardens with the Bengal boys on the eve of their home match against Baroda.

When Bengal take on Baroda at Eden tomorrow in the Ranji Trophy Super League match, it will be interesting to watch how the little battles within the war unfold.

The match marks the return of Ganguly to serious cricket after he quit international cricket a year back and found himself in a tangle in last summer’s IPL carnival.

Then there’s the comeback of Irfan Pathan to top-flight cricket — he’s finally match-fit after a two-month lay-off cost him heavily on the international front. Out of action for quite some and out of favour with the national selectors, Irfan is all fired-up to make this battle against Ganguly & Co count in his bid to return to the Indian team for the Sri Lanka series.

Even as the Pathan-Ganguly face-off makes for a mouth-watering prospect, there’s a battle brewing at yet another level — between Baroda coach Paras Mhambrey and the Bengal players, the same side that he powered to the Ranji finals twice in a row as coach a few seasons back.

Baroda of course have a couple of things to keep in mind — Ganguly’s presence and the absence of Bengal’s four key players, both factors strangely cancelling each other out.

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