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Former India cricketer Manoj Tiwary has claimed his confidence took a big hit after being dropped from the team despite hitting a century.
MS Dhoni (left) and Manoj Tiwary (AFP Photo)
It’s been 16 years since Manoj Tiwary made his India debut and he recently retired from all forms of Indian cricket but the pain of not getting a long rope to prove himself he belonged to the international stage still rankles. Tiwary made his ODI debut in 2008 and then waited another three years before getting another chance, scored a century in what was the sixth ODI of his fledgling career. His career suffered a setback though as the century wasn’t enough to warrant a long run with the Tiwary being dropped again as he missed the next 14 matches with MS Dhoni at the helm.
In July 2012, he got another chance in the ODIs against Sri Lanka in Colombo, took four wickets followed that with a half-century but a poor string of scores in the next four innings saw him falling off the radar.
He played 12 ODIs and three T20Is between 2008 and 2015.
During a chat with Cricket Addictor, Tiwary was quizzed over him being dropped despite a strong showing and he reluctantly opened up admitting the decision did crush his confidence.
“It’s all in the past but yeah, I do feel sad,” Tiwary said. “I would be lying if say otherwise but life goes on. If I write my autobiography or do a podcast, I will reveal my story. Yeah, it wasn’t easy. Crushing the confidence of a guy when he’s at the peak (of his career) does impact the mindset.”
Earlier this year, Tiwary had said he would one day ask Dhoni why he dropped him from the India playing XI in 2011 despite hitting a century.
“I would like to ask Dhoni why was I dropped from the playing XI in 2011 after scoring a century? I had the potential to be a hero just like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli but could not be. Today, when I see many people getting more opportunities on TV, I feel sad,” Tiwary had said.
