Rohit Jhalani hit a solid 85 as Rajasthan set Bengal a daunting target on the penultimate day of the four-day Elite Group B Ranji Trophy cricket match at Jaipur on Sunday.
Rajasthan, who had taken a first innings lead of 135, declared their second innings at 268 for five with Vineet Saxena (59) and Anshu Jain (53) notching up half centuries.
Chasing a victory target of 404, Bengal lost an early wicket and were nine for one at stumps on the third day with Devang Gandhi (4) and Amitava Chakroborty (4) at the crease.
Earlier, resuming their second innings at 32 for one, Rajasthan consolidated their position further with Jhalani dominating the opposition bowlers with some fine strokes all around the ground.
Except for S Lahiri, who returned with figures of three for 69, no other Bengal bowler could put any pressure on the Rajasthan batsmen as the home side piled on runs before declaring their innings.
Bengal's chase got off to a poor start when Deep Dasgupta was trapped leg before wicket by P Krishnakumar. The batsman failed to open his account.
Bengal, who still need 395 runs for a win, will have to survive 90 overs tomorrow to force a draw.