The life of an athlete is frequently filled with challenges, particularly in India, where the level of competition can be quite high.
Nevertheless, Indian sports are rich with narratives of individuals who, despite coming from modest beginnings, achieved stardom through dedication and perseverance. Manoj Tiwary, a former Indian cricketer, exemplifies this journey. He represented India in 12 One Day Internationals and three Twenty20 Internationals. However, with a bit more luck, he might have participated in additional international games.
Tiwary competed alongside prominent cricketers such as Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Gautam Gambhir during his tenure with the Indian national team. In the 2006-07 Ranji Trophy season, he accumulated 796 runs, boasting an impressive average of 99.50. He served as the long-time captain of Bengal and was recognized as one of the top cricketers to come from the state.
Tiwary encountered significant challenges both during matches and in his personal life. At one point, he considered retiring early due to a lack of consistent opportunities with the Indian team.
“Due to responsibility, I did not take early retirement,” he said.
Tiwary encountered significant challenges both during matches and in his personal life. At one point, he considered retiring early due to a lack of consistent opportunities with the Indian team. “Those were difficult times. One thing I always had in mind was that I had to pay off the loan. We have Mangla Haat In Kolkata, there I used to sell poori sabzi. My mom used to make the pooris. Sometimes people did not even pay for the food that they ate,” Manoj Tiwary said on Lallantop.
“I worked in factories of nut and bolts. This was around when I was around 14 years old. I got Rs 1200 per match when I played in U-16 level. So I did the maths and made sure I did well in cricket so that the money always comes. I ran away from the factory. It was too hectic. The factory owner used to make us work.”
His first appearance in 2008 was unremarkable. He scored his first ODI century against the West Indies in Chennai in 2011, but was sidelined for several months following that match. At that time, MS Dhoni was the captain of the team.
“He was the captain. Team India runs according to the planning of the skipper. In state teams, things are different but in Team India its all about the captain. If you see, during Kapil Dev’s time it was he who ran the show, during Sunil Gavaskar’s tenure it was his call, same was during Mohammad Azharuddin’s tenure. After that Dada and so on. This will go on unless a strict administrator comes and makes a set rule,” Manoj Tiwary said.
“You see Ajit Agarkar (current BCCI chief selector) and you feel he can take strong decisions. He can disagree with the coach. As far as me being dropped for 14 matches after scoring a century, if a player is dropped after scoring a century, obviously I want to know the answer. After century I was praised, but post that I did not have any inkling. At that time, youngsters used to feel afraid, including me. If you ask something, who knows what way it could have been taken. Career is on the line.
“The players who were in the team then were Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma. After that the Tour which took place, they were not making runs. And here I was, even after making a century and winning Player of the Match, could not find a place in playing XI. I was dropped for 14 matches, which took place in a space of six months. At that time the dropped player did not get enough practice. I wanted to retire but due to family responsibility could not.”
