10th-grade student Ankit Chatterjee made his Ranji Trophy debut for Bengal at just 15 years of age. He broke legendary cricketer Sourav Ganguly’s record, who made his first class debut during the 1989-90 Ranji Trophy final against Delhi at just 17 years of age. In that match, the southpaw replaced his brother and current Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Snehasish Ganguly in the playing XI.
Ankit meanwhile studies at Bangaon High School in the North 24 Parganas district. He plays age-group cricket for Shyambazar Club, which is over 75 kilometres away from his school. The 15-year-old has done extremely well in age-group cricket, which helped him earn his spot in the playing XI for Bengal in the match against Haryana.
Bengal bundle Haryana for 157 runs
Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal wreaked havoc with the ball, clinching six wickets against Haryana at Bengal Cricket Academy Ground in Kalyani. Batting first, the Ankit Kumar-led side had a decent start as the captain led by example. He stitched an opening partnership of 81 runs with Lakshhya Dalal and that was expected to set Haryana post a decent total on the board.
However, after captain Ankit departed for 57 runs off 56 deliveries, wickets kept falling as Haryana failed to build any momentum. Suraj bowled brilliantly, at the right lengths to pick wickets at regular intervals. Meanwhile, Mukesh Kumar played his role perfectly, picking two. Mohammed Kaif also contributed with two as he sent Dheeru Singh and Sumit Kumar back to the pavilion.
Haryana were eventually bundled for 157 runs in the first innings. Meanwhile, debutant Ankit opened the innings with Writthick Chatterjee. In the absence of Abhimanyu Easwaran, who is out with a hairline fracture, the youngster has been given the opener’s role and if he manages to prove his worth with the bat, Ankit can cement his spot in the playing XI.