Bengal will have revenge on mind as they face MP.

Bengal will have revenge on mind as they face MP.

• Kolkata: Bengal will have revenge on their mind when they take on defending champions Madhya Pradesh in their Ranji Trophy semifinal match at Holkar Stadium in Indore from Wednesday. 

• At the same stage of the tournament last year, Madhya Pradesh had come out on top in Alur Karnataka. In fact, with a victory margin of 174 runs, Madhya Pradesh had made it look all too simply, despite some brilliant individual performances from the Bengal team like Shabaz Ahmed (a century and eight wickets), Manoj Tiwary (century), Mukesh Ku- mar (four-wicket haul in first innings) and Abhimanyu Eas Waran (a fighting 78 in the second innings)

• However, the Himanshu Mantras and Kumar Kartikey as had ensured a memorable win for Madhya Pradesh and set them on the path of winning the title as a disappointed Bengal fell short of achieving their goal. Heroes of that match will be in the fray again this time around and Madhya Pradesh will certainly seek in spiration from that game to get over the line and inch closer to defending the title.

• This time, they will be playing at home, something that would work in their Favour Bengal will once again look up to Easwaran, who is set to open with youngster Karan Lal, to deliver at the top. Opening has not been among Bengal's stronger points this season and they have tried out various combinations.

• With Kazi Junaid Saifi a disappointment in the nine- wicket win over Jharkhand in the quarterfinals, Lal would have the opportunity to Streng then his place in the squad.

• Bengaluru: On more one occasion over the past few seasons, Karnataka have come within touching distance of winning a Trophy but have failed to finish what they have often begun well. Come Wednesday, they will get opportunity to inch closer towards staking claim to the Ranji Trophy which they last won 2014-15.

• In their quest for the elusive title, Mayank Agarwal and his men will have to first overcome their nemesis Saurashtra in the semifinal at the M Chinnasamy stadium here. This is a repeat of the 2018-19 last-four contest at the same venue which the visitors won by five wickets.

• Since 2008-09, Saurashtra have maintained a clean slate against Karnataka, winning the three knockout matches between the two sides.

• What sets Saurashtra apart is the core values of the team their sense of to get- herness, the ability to fight till the last ball is bowled and the patience and guile with which they unravel the opposition.

• They showcased all these traits with their remarkable come-from-behind win against Punjab in the quarterfinals. Another aspect of Saurashtra's game is their ability to adapt to the conditions quickly, which to some extent nullifies the home advantage for Karnataka.

• The former champions are without the services of three key players their inspirational skipper Jaydev Unadkat, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ravindra Jadeja.