The first day's play of the East Zone Under-14 encounter between Bengal and Tripura saw the former make a respectable 279/9 at stumps on the first day at the East Calcutta Districts Sports Council ground on Tuesday.

Play was interrupted both as it began and as it ended. In the morning, play was delayed as the pitch was wet and the game could not begin till 10 am. Any thoughts of making up lost time by extending the playing hours in the evening was cut short 12 minutes before 5 pm as light deteriorated rapidly.

In between, Bengal posted a handy score. Tripura skipper Bhaskarjyoti Deb Barma won the toss and put Bengal in to bat. Opener Arindam Ghosh who made a patient 72 (13 boundaries, 173 balls) stood tall among the ruins. Avishek Bhowmik (35) chipped in, but it was a timely half century from S Piaruddin that enabled Bengal to reach their final score. Piaruddin's speedy knock of 56 included eight hits to the boundary and came off just 67 balls.

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