Manoj Tiwary recorded his best-ever score in first-class cricket, hitting an unbeaten 303 that took Bengal to a commanding position in the Ranji Trophy Group A clash versus Hyderabad, at the Bengal Cricket Academy ground in Kalyani on Monday.
Yet, he fell 20 short of the highest individual score by a Bengal player. Current national selector Devang Gandhi still holds that record – 323 (versus Assam, in Guwahati in the 1998-99 season).
Not surpassing Devang doesn’t bother Tiwary though. “Don’t remind me of (it)…” was the former Bengal captain’s first reaction when told about Devang’s record.
“It’s okay… There will be a lot of opportunities, hopefully. Let him be happy with it…” Tiwary added.
It wasn’t many days ago when Tiwary complained against Devang after the latter allegedly entered the Bengal dressing room during a Ranji Trophy game at the Eden. That led to a big controversy and the selector was asked to leave the dressing room.
Tiwary had also lashed out at Devang last year, alleging the latter had not responded to his calls or texts after he wasn’t picked for the 2018 Duleep Trophy.
On Monday, when contacted by The Telegraph, Devang said: “Whatever he did, it was his call... His view... He actually doesn’t know what transpires in the meeting, so I’ll not blame him. He is being misled by certain sections and he shouldn’t be paying heed to all these.”
About Tiwary’s triple century, he said: “It’s his moment of glory. He has done well. But I have nothing against him. I just hope he can guide Bengal to a Ranji Trophy triumph. We know how good he is and I’m very happy for him.”
Devang also shared an anecdote about his triple century. “It’s a co-incidence that Arun Lal, the current coach, was also the coach when I had got the triple. And I had actually broken Arun’s record with those runs,” he said.
Tiwary was not picked by any team in the IPL players’ auction held recently. The 34-year-old accepts it as “harsh reality”.
“It’s difficult to digest the fact that I will not be playing the IPL again. But that’s the reality.
“The franchise management obviously look for something different, which in their eyes, I might not be able to provide. Maybe that’s the reason they have not picked me. But my job is to keep on scoring runs and play according to the situation of the game.
“It’s difficult for me to answer, but it feels bad when you see so many youngsters and so many players playing while I sit back at home and watch the games.
“At times, the kind of shots that are played remind me that I can also play those shots. So when I think about those things, it feels bad. Anyway, it’s a harsh reality and I have to live with it.”