Sairaj Bahutule appointed coach of Bengal Ranji team

Former fast bowler Ranadeb Bose will be assistant coach.

New Delhi: Former Mumbai leg-spinner Sairaj Bahutule will be coaching Bengal in the upcoming Ranji Trophy season. The 42 year old will replace Ashoke Malhotra under whom Bengal barely managed to save relegation. “We have decided to appoint Sairaj Bahutule as the Bengal coach for the next domestic season. He will join the team at the end of this month. Ranadeb Bose will be the assistant coach,” Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) secretary Sourav Ganguly told PTI on the sidelines of IPL working group meeting. There had been talks about Bahutule taking over Bengal coaching but there was no clarity. Bahutule had played 2 Tests and 8 ODIs for India but had been a Mumbai stalwart for years winning multiple Ranji Trophy titles. READ: Sairaj Bahutule: Giant of First-Class cricket who didn’t do justice to his talent at the highest level

He played a whopping 188 first-class matches taking 630 wickets and scoring 6176 runs. But will Bahutule be able to deliver considering he did not deliver the goods for Vidarbha? “Let him work with the boys. I have faith in him,” said Ganguly. While he would definitely mentor Bengal senior team he made it clear he won’t travel for away matches.