It is still a mystery. This is a question I will definitely ask: Manoj Tiwari

India is a country that is immensely blessed in the sport of cricket. Our country has produced an enormous amount of cricketing talent from different eras. From Kapil Dev to Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the list of players who have succeeded on the international stage is endless.

But a few players have failed to create a name for themselves. Even though they have delivered impressive performances from time to time, the intense competition for a position in the National squad might have sidelined those players. Manoj Tiwary happens to be one such player.

Manoj Tiwary is not just known as a cricketer but also for his other profession, politics. 

Tiwary made his national debut in 2008. He has played 12 ODIs and three T20Is for the Indian squad. He even struck a century in December 2011 against the West Indies. But, he was left on the bench for 14 successive matches following the century.

In simple words, his career was filled with several 'what could have been' possibilities. But, when asked about it, the former batter has zero regrets. In addition, he feels that he would have done well, and his career would have been in a different phase if he had played under the current management.

Tiwary said to Sports Tak: "The current management that is backing the players despite failing in 4-5 matches had it been there when I was playing, it would have helped me because if you remember, I scored a 100 against West Indies and was named Man of the Match. And still got dropped for the next 14 matches and couldn't make a place in the playing XI. It is still a mystery. This question I will definitely ask those who were in charge back then." 

Tiwary added: "In this too, I made a world record. Barring me, there wouldn't be a player who despite winning Man of the Match, was made to sit for the next 14 matches. After that, when I played. I picked up four wickets and scored 65 runs and still did not get many chances. When you mature, you don't regret it much. Although I do feel sad at times – when you see a player batting you think I had more potential. If I had gotten more chances, I would have proven myself." 

The Indian batter has appreciated the management's ideology of backing players for a longer period. He has taken the instance of Rishabh Pant, who has received considerable backing from the management; during his ups and downs. Also, Tiwary mentioned that if he had the chance to play under the guidance of Rahul Dravid, he would have benefitted greatly. 

"Had this management been there in my time, I would have gotten more opportunities. You look at the players, and you know they are playing freely and not out of fear of losing their place in the team. Irrespective of whether the wickets and runs are coming, the management is backing them. It feels good to see it because I have always felt that four innings don't make or break a player," mentioned Tiwary.

Adding to the above statement, he said: "If the management has decided that yes, this player has the potential to win a match at any point in time. Recently, people pointed fingers at Rishabh Pant that he is not consistent enough, but Rahul Dravid made it clear that he is a part of India's broader plans and he is going to win us matches." 

Manoj Tiwary has been a set-batter for the Bengal Cricket Team in the ongoing Ranji Trophy. In addition, he is the sitting MLA for Trinamool Congress from Shibpur Constituency.