Ranji Trophy: Bengal look for hat-trick of wins as Kerala host table-toppers on seamer-friendly track

Bengal’s Mohammad Shami during the Ranji Trophy Elite Group C cricket match between Delhi and Bengal in Kalyani, West Bengal. (PTI photo) If momentum is important in sports, then both Kerala and Bengal will carry it in abundance when they square off in an Elite Group C Ranji Trophy match at the KCA ground, Mangalapuram, in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday.Kerala, fresh from their innings win against Odisha in their last match, will have their work cut out for them to stop an upbeat Bengal who will be aiming for a hat-trick of wins after beating Delhi and Services to stay top of the table with 12 points in their group.However, Bengal will be looking for an improved show from their batsmen after they failed to put enough runs on the board against Services. Their spinners did it for them then, but the KCA ground is unlikely to help them much. In that case, Bengal could go into the game with three pacers, with Mohammed Shami taking the new ball again after the former Indian pacer sat out the last over. He will expect good support from his brother Mohammed Kaif and Suraj Singh Jaiswal. Toss is likely to play an important role on a surface that offers timely assistance to pacemakers.Bengal coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla will look for more runs from the blades of Sudip Chatterjee and opener Ankur Pal as Bengal need to put up a competitive total against a good batting unit that includes Sachin Baby, Vishnu Vinod and Mohammed Azharuddin. A lot will depend on how the ever-dependable Jalaj Saxena contributes with both ball and bat.Shahbaz Ahmed will once again play a key role for Bengal after the all-rounder made an immediate impact on his return from injury to play his first match in months against Services.However, the weather could turn sour with intermittent rain forecast to spoil the teams’ training in the coming days. But the possibility of a complete washout is remote and both sides are preparing for a stop-start game.