Ranji Trophy 2022: We Love Hunting In A Pack - Akash Deep On Bengal Bowling Unit

Bengal pacer Akash Deep said their bowling unit enjoys celebrating each other’s success and they love working together. Bengal has garnered everyone’s attention in the Ranji Trophy 2022 as they chase for a successive final in India’s premier domestic event.

Bengal topped the charts in Elite Group B getting the better of Hyderabad, Baroda and Chandigarh to qualify for the quarter-finals with 18 points. They outclassed Jharkhand in the last eight round by posting a humungous first-innings total of 773/7. Although the game ended in a stalemate Bengal earned a semi-final berth based on the first-innings lead of 475 runs.

Bengal team has a congenial atmosphere: Akash Deep

Bengal is the only team in the current edition of Ranji Trophy to have bowled out their opponents in all games until the quarter-final. With 19 wickets in five games, Mukesh Kumar has picked the most wickets for Bengal followed by Shahbaz Ahmed (15) and Akash (13).

Akash mentioned he loves bowling alongside Mukesh and Ishan Porel and they take pride in each other’s achievements.

“The Bengal team has a congenial atmosphere where the bowlers enjoy each other’s success. When Ishan (Porel) and Mukesh (Kumar) bhai open the bowling for the team, I hope they take all the wickets so that I don’t have to bowl at all (laughs)! I’m sure they think the same way when it’s my turn to bowl. I take pride in their success and they take pride in mine. We love hunting in a pack,” Akash told Sportskeeda. 

I was not thinking about the milestone: Akash Deep

Bengal achieves a massive milestone in the quarter-final fixture against Jharkhand for the time in the history of first-class cricket the top-nine batters scored 50-plus in a single inning.

Abhishek Raman (61), Abhimanyu Easwaran (65), Sudip Gharami (186), A Majumdar (117), Manoj Tiwary (73), Abhishek Porel (68), Shahbaz Ahmed (78), Sayan Mondal (53*) and Akash (53*) all scored fifty-plus scores.

“We knew we had equalled Australia’s previous record after our eighth batter Sayan Shekhar Mondal scored a fifty. When I went in to bat, I was told by the team management that if I made a fifty, it would be a new world record. I was not thinking about the milestone though. I just wanted to get some quick runs so that we could declare as soon as possible,” Akash spoke on the milestone. 

Bengal are currently playing Madhya Pradesh in the semi-final at the KSCA Cricket Ground in Alur. MP were leading by 231 runs in the second innings at the stumps of Day 3 and Bengal have an arduous task to make a comeback in the game.

Also Read: Arun Lal Believes That Akash Deep Has Yet To Be Discovered By The IPL