Manoj Tiwary continues to harbour hopes of a comeback. Each innings, in any format, rekindles his self-belief and propels him on the journey to once again play for India. “Once again,” he says with conviction and a smile that reflects his healthy approach to the game.
His knock of 120 against Karnataka on Monday was a performance that showed Tiwary in his elements. He struck the ball with elegance and also with power and almost pulled off a coup in chase of 297. If only he could finish the job. His wicket allowed Karnataka to breathe easy.
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India 'B' lost the momentum after Tiwary’s dismissal. “I’m really disappointed on not taking the team through here. If I’d carried on, the match would’ve finished two overs earlier. I’ve to learn from this mistake and make sure it doesn’t happen again,” said Tiwary.
It was a familiar role that Tiwary was playing. “When I go in, I have to control the game according to the situation. And it has been like this for years. I don’t want to berate my team (Bengal), but batsmen from Mumbai or Karnataka have the luxury of playing the game freely, which isn’t the case for me.”
Memories of his ODI century against the West Indies at Chennai in 2011 are vivid. Also the sadness of not being considered for the next match that India played. “After that century, I was dropped for the next 14 games, which took place over a period of six months. But see, I've led Bengal for a number of years now. So whenever we’ve to make a decision, I understand that it’s for the betterment of the team. So similarly in my case also, the management must’ve thought that the other player might do a better job than me.”
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Tiwary looks at his cricket journey philosophically. “I believe in destiny. I didn’t get a longer run in the sub-continent. If I’d got one or two series in India I would’ve done well to be honest. It shouldn’t be an excuse.”
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