Panaji: Goa have a chance to open their account in the Ranji Trophy Elite Group A when they face Bihar at the Panjim Gymkhana on Monday.It has been a disastrous start for Goa as they have lost their first three matches: against Baroda, Uttar Pradesh and Vidarbha. Playing at home, they should, however, be able to get the better of Bihar, who have also lost three matches so far.“Our players have played well. It is just that batting has not clicked. Our bowlers have done well. The openers haven’t clicked yet, but we have many matches to go. Our middle-order batters will deliver. We will show good results and stay in the Elite group,” said Goa Cricket Association secretary Tulsidas Shetye.Shetye believes that Goa would always get tested in a “tough group.”“Facing Baroda and Vidarbha was always going to be challenging. We had the UP match in our hands, though we lost it.”Another factor affecting Goa has been the absence of all-rounder Arjun Tendulkar, who has missed all matches due to injury.“He is training and will be available subject to a fitness test,” Shetye said.The worrying part for Goa is that their batters have not crossed 250 in the last six innings. The highest they scored was 220 in the first innings against Vidarbha, thanks to opener Manthan Khutkar’s 70. Another opener, Shivendra Bhujbal, has had a mixed run, but failed to score a ton.Goa will hope their star performer Suyash Prabhudessai finds form sooner rather than later. He has managed 100 runs in his last six innings, 72 being the highest against UP in the second match.“Suyash is too good a batter not to score a century. We are sure that he will score plenty of runs. It is a matter of finding form,” said Shetye.Other batters like captain Abhinav Tejrana, Snehal Kauthankar, Lalit Yadav and Deepraj Gaonkar hold promise but have not delivered so far.“One innings and Goa’s fortunes will change,” said Shetye.In the bowling department, off-spinner Yash Kasvankar stood out against UP with a 10-wicket haul. His bowling figures kept Goa in the hunt until they collapsed in the fourth innings. Vidarbha and Baroda were expected to dominate Goa bowlers with their star batting line-up.Bihar have lost to Madhya Pradesh by an innings and 174 runs, by 10 wickets against Baroda. and by an innings and 267 runs against UP.Opener Mangal Mahrour’s 138 against Baroda was the only bright moment in their campaign this season.Goa cannot afford to take them lightly as they have Yash Dayal and Karan Sharma in their bowling ranks.
