Ranji Trophy: Green-top pitch awaits Saurashtra for the final against Bengal

Bengal are going to welcome Saurashtra with a green-top pitch at the Eden Gardens when the two sides meet for the Ranji Trophy summit clash, scheduled to start from Thursday.Bengal's main strength this season has been their pace bowling unit, with Akash Deep (37), Ishan Porel (24) and Mukesh Kumar (18) accounting for the most number of wickets.The Eden Gardens centre strip on Tuesday sported a green cover and Cricket Association of Bengal pitch curator Sujan Mukherjee said there would be no "further trimming"."Our pace bowling is much better than Saurashtra and we will have a similar grass cover on the pitch, there is no further scope for trimming," Mukherjee told reporters.

Asked whether toss would be a factor, he said: "As always, the first and the last hour at Eden Gardens are crucial when wicket aids seam movement. It would be no different this time. Toss won't be a big advantage. Luck has been with the Bengal side this season, and I hope they win the title this time."Two-time champions Bengal are yet to win the Ranji Trophy since 1989-90. Since then, they have made the final four times, the last being in 2019-20 when they lost to Saurashtra.Bengal's last Ranji triumph also came at the Eden Gardens and they would look to end the prolonged drought, with a 'sweet revenge' against Saurashtra.

Sambaran Banerjee (TOI Photo)Ranji winning captain Sambaran to ring Eden BellCaptain of the 1989-90 triumph Sambaran Banerjee would ring the 'Eden Bell' to signal the start of the match on Thursday, president Snehasish Ganguly said.Snehasish was also a member of that side along with his younger brother Sourav Ganguly who is currently in the UK."We have invited all the Ranji Trophy winning members and they would be present during