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Kolkata: After their exploits with the bat, Mumbai put up a cohesive effort to dismiss Bengal for 296 on the penultimate day on Friday and will now eye an outright win tomorrow with the home team following on as they trail the visitors by 325 runs in the first innings.
Replying to Mumbai's mammoth 621 for eight declared, debutant Writam Porel smashed a defiant 71 while off-spinner Saurashish Lahiri gave him good company with a patient 62 to help Bengal amass 296 after they were five down for 84 runs at one stage.
Right-arm pacer Dhawal Kulkarni scalped three wickets for Mumbai giving away 92 runs, while veteran Ajit Agarkar (2/56), Aavishkar Salvi (2/51) and off-spinner Romesh Powar (2/63) accounted for two victims apiece.
At stumps, Mumbai had already assured itself three points by virtue of a huge 325-run first innings lead but the visitors are expected to go for the kill tomorrow to ensure full five points from the tie.
Resuming at 28 for one, Bengal had a terrible start to the day as they lost overnight batsman Rohan Banerjee (3) without adding any run on the scoreboard as he nicked one to Omkar Gurav behind the stumps off Kulkarni.
Sreevats Goswami (20) too departed in a similar fashion to Agarkar after adding just five runs to his overnight score.
To make matters worse for the hosts, skipper Manoj Tiwary (15) was run out and then wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha followed suit slumping Bengal to 84 for five in 39.4 overs.
Then Porel stitched a crucial 70-run partnership with Laxmi Ratan Shukla (38) to steady the sinking Bengal ship before he became the seventh hosts batsmen to fall.
Porel struck 13 beautiful boundaries in his maiden 127-ball first class knock.
Then came Lahiri who together with Shibsagar Singh (40) held fort and added 91 runs for the eighth wicket in 23.2 overs to take the Bengal score near 300-mark.
While Lahiri hit nine fours in his 110-ball knock, Shibsagar decorated his innings with seven hits to the fence.
