Bengal batsmen to fill Manoj's absence

Bengal coach Ashok Malhotra, who took charge of the team today, asked their batsmen to take up extra responsibility in absence of Manoj Tiwary who had been ruled out for about six months due to a knee injury.
"On an average, Tiwary scores about 700-800 runs per season so his absence would be a big factor. The boys need to take up more responsibility," Malhotra said after the team's first practice session at the Eden indoor facility.
The Ranji Trophy title is eluding Bengal since 1989-90 and Malhotra's mantra for the batsmen is to be strong mentally to cope with the four-day format.

"Batting frailty has been the main reason behind our failure. We have talents but what we lack is the temperament required for four-day cricket. The boys need to change their approach from limited overs cricket to longer format," the former India batsman said.
"Last season, we suffered from inconsistency but we have great potential. Hopefully we can perform to expectations this season," the 56-year-old added.
In absence of Tiwary, Wriddhiman Saha (in India A's tour of South Africa) and Laxmi Ratan Shukla (undergoing rehab), Anustup Majumdar will lead a young CAB XI squad in the Buchi Babu Invitation tournament in Chennai from August 15.

The skipper said the practice tournament would help them gear up for the season giving the youngsters a good chance to get noticed.

"Many big teams would be there so it would help us in preparation.
"Apart from Laxmi, Manoj and Wriddhiman, we will also miss Ashok Dinda and Shami Ahmed. But it will be an opportunity for the youngsters.
"If they can perform in this tournament, they can be considered for the Ranji Trophy squad," Majumdar said.
THE SQUAD:
Anustup Majumdar (c), Partha Sarathi Bhattacharya, Jayojit Basu, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sreevats Goswami, Arnab Nandi, Aritra Chatterjee, Ravi Kant Singh, Alok Pratap Singh, Sourav Mondal, Amir Gani, Writam Porel, Ankit Keshri, Prinan Dutta, Sanjit Sardar and Anup Samaddar.