Earlier this week, India wrapped up a fine series win over visiting Australia with a resounding seven wicket victory in Bengaluru. Finishing off the job for India in that game were two of their fringe players who have recently made their mark on the International front- Shreyas Iyer and Manish Pandey.
While these two were scripting a famous win for the country, another of India’s perennial fringe players Manoj Tiwary was busy sweating it out in a Ranji Trophy match for his native West Bengal against Hyderabad. The 34-year-old toiled hard in that First Class game, steading the ship after his side were 60-3 at one point.
Tiwary batted for most parts of the first and second day of this Ranji Trophy game, making easy work of the likes of Ravi Kiran, Mehdi Hassan and T Ravi Teja. He exemplified all the qualities necessary for a good Test batsman, scoring at a good pace to get to his maiden triple hundred in domestic cricket. Tiwari’s innings was studded with 30 fours and five sixes, as his West Bengal declared their innings on 635-7.
It’s gonna be a gud night sleep for me tonight. Blessed to have scored my maiden triple hundred in first class cricket today against hyderabad 👍 Want to thank of all of u who all have sent their love nd wishes for me. Really appreciate it from the bottom of my heart 💓🤙 pic.twitter.com/jVc6NBXcEK
— MANOJ TIWARY (@tiwarymanoj) January 20, 2020
Being the talismanic performer for his Ranji side hasn’t been a one-off for the middle-order batsman though. Tiwary was the second highest run scorer for West Bengal last season, and was one of the few players to get a double century last year in the Indian domestic circuit. He also performed admirably in the Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2019, helping Bengal to finish third in their group.
Tiwary has 27 First Class centuries to his name, as well as 35 fifties, scoring at an average of 64.41. He’s been Bengal’s man for an occasion multiple times in his long and illustrious career, like in the game against Tamil Nadu where his first innings 90 not out helped his side get a crucial win.
Despite consistently recording good performances on the domestic circuit, Tiwary hasn’t been able to replicate that level of performances while playing for India. A combination of inconsistencies and bad fortune meant that the middle-order batsman represented India only in 12 ODIs and three T20 Internationals. He also unfortunately picked up injuries every time he was looking to cement a place on the International front, most notably in 2013 when he was opted out of a Zimbabwe series due to a knee injury.
The 34-year-old also has had no luck in the Indian T20 League. He has an average of just over 28 in that tournament but he struggled to find form in the 2018 editions, playing five matches but only getting 47 runs. Since then, Tiwary has failed to find himself a bidder in the Indian T20 League, going unsold in the past two auctions.
Tiwary the cricketer taken in isolation of his International career, seems like a player who failed to live up to his potential. But nevertheless, his domestic career has been rife with spectacular performances one after another. With more than 100 First Class appearances to his name and still going strong, Manoj Tiwary well and truly remains an underappreciated gem of Indian domestic cricket.
Feature image: AFP/ Pal Pillai
