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They are the new faces
of Bengal cricket and they promise to deliver the goods given
a chance. Ranadeb Bose and Manoj Tewari talk to TWF correspondent
B Arindham about their cricket and life ahead.
January 30, 2007: The Bengal boys were playing sepak-takraw
at the end of the day’s practice. A lazy ray of gold
spread across the western gallery of the coliseum called Eden
Gardens and a motley group of reporters and camera persons
hobnobbed with Bengal coach Paras Mahmbrey. Ranadeb Bose was
completing his last lap and retired to the nets to bowl at
the stumps standing rooted to the nets. Standing near the
side screen was Manoj Tewari caressing his bat and looked
longingly at the edges as he completed a set of shadows that
had drives, cuts, pulls and hooks .They were readying themselves
to leave their mark on Mumbai, the heart of nation’s
cricket, in the Ranji finals commencing three days down the
line. By the time the match ended, they had made their mark.
The writing was on the wall.
Cut back to July, 2007.
Ranadeb Bose is in Ireland after being included in the Test
team to play a full series against England. Manoj Tewari has
got his slings off and is now preparing to launch himself
again for another call up, sooner or later.
They are the faces of Bengal cricket today. And if Sourav
Ganguly has been the Prince of Kolkata, they are the generation
next in the real sense of the term.
Paras Mahmbrey as a coach had always found both these cricketers
exceptional talents. They are sure mettle to play for the
national team, he had said repeatedly. And experts from Bengal
felt likewise. But what is more important is that the cricketer
duo has enough fire in their belly to prove their point.
Ranadeb Bose in fact wants to make a career out of tormenting
the opposition. "Even as a kid I liked the fact that
my friends were afraid to face me. They were scared of me.
They kind of hero-worshipped me. I enjoy making the batsmen
feel uncomfortable and that is how it will be all my life.
I enjoy eye-ball-to-eye-ball contest, a little gamesmanship,"
Ranadeb said before leaving.
"I like to see them tormented as I bowl. As a pace bowler
there is nothing wrong in being a little arrogant, but I never
get personal with the opposition batsman. I know it's a game
and a gentle-man's game," he added.
The bowler reinvented himself as he took up the mantle of
leading Bengal attack in the absence of injured S S Paul.
He has got fifty-seven Ranji wickets in eight matches, five
5-wkts haul in five straight matches, and six in all, two
10-wicket hauls, and three four-wicket hauls to go with that.
"I am not afraid of being hit by a batsman. If he goes
out of his way to hit me that means I am bowling well. That
is the reason he is trying so hard. It inspires me to bowl
better," Ranadeb says.
"In England the conditions should suit me. God willing
I will be able to showcase my talent and convert it into wicket
taking deliveries. After all at the end of the day it is the
wicket that you take which matters. I will give my best and
would want to return with a bagful of those given a chance,"
he hopes.
But how does he manage not overstepping? "You can call
it muscle memory. As a kid my coach Gopal Bose would shout
at us if we overstepped. He wanted discipline. I made sure
he did not shout at me. Then it became an unconscious habit.
I often bowl from a little behind the popping crease, but
never cross the line. If a bowl a front foot no-ball, I will
surprise myself," Ranadeb says.
Ranadeb Bose does not have any fascination of being compared
to Jason Gillespie, despite his flowing mane, which has now
been replaced by a more controlled pony-tail. However, one
commonality Bose wouldn't complain about is his ability to
be relentless on unyielding wickets. He has developed a rhythm
that allows him to beat the bat consistently, odd edges flied
past slips, but Bose keeps coming back.
"The first ball I bowled as a kid was an outswinger.
It is god gifted. It comes out naturally. All I have to do
it is get it more polished. That is what I have been doing,"
he says.
Incidentally, five of the eight matches he played this season
that yielded him 57 wickets was at Eden Gardens, a pitch that
has become a burial ground for the fast bowlers. There is
not much that is spectacular about his bowling, just a nice
flowing action and the ability to put the ball in right areas.
He does not have the pace to hurry or scare quality batsmen,
but uses his height to extract bounce.
Asked given a chance how would he inspire the youngsters from
the state, he said, "I would like to be the bridge between
Sourav Ganguly and the next generation of cricketers."
Manoj Tewary on the other hand symbolises Bengal's new brand
of cricket, one built on youth and fearlessness. Within two
years of first-class cricket, he has become the most talked-about
name outside the Indian team. His minimalistic approach towards
batting is admirable. The purpose of his batting is to slaughter
the bowlers and he will do it any which way.
He goes about doing that in the most aggressive of manners.
He idolises Kevin Pietersen and it is evident through his
mannerism on the field. A front foot player he often stands
and delivers in the manner of a baseball player making him
a treat to watch. With a domestic average of 57.50 he is certainly
the player to watch out for.
He does believes that he can slip into Maharaj’s shoes
given a chance. “I have it in me to play for India for
a long time. I know it. I am confident and I am going to play
my game so that the selectors call me again,” Manoj says
with determination.
Manoj was drafted in the squad that went to Bangladesh and
was set to make his mark, but his exuberance got the better
of him as on the eve of the opening one-dayer he injured his
right shoulder.
Now the sling is gone after Dr Andrew Wallace in England operated
him and he has resumed his weight training. “I will be
match fit by the end of July. I am working towards it,”
Manoj said tugging at his kits.
Asked whet were his strong points that gave him such confidence,
Manoj quips, “I think it is my approach and the confidence
with which I play. I read the game well in advance and plan
my innings accordingly.”
“I am an aggressive cricketer. I don’t like the
bowlers to dominate me. Though I would respect a good ball
and curb my natural aggression if the game demands, I will
in all probability hit seven out of 10 deliveries,’ he
says.
“I will fight for my place. I am sure I will perform
well in the domestic season again and look forward for a call-up.
It’s a great honour playing for the country and I will
do my best to serve my country,” Manoj adds.
On his memorable innings, Manoj said, “The innings I
played against Mumbai in the final of the Ranji and then the
hundred against Hyderabad under trying circumstances.”
Former national selector and ex-Bengal Ranji skipper Sambaran
Banerjee who has seen these two flower over the years, feel
that they are extremely talented and can make their mark if
they remain focused, even in face of adversity.
“I know they are talented and they have the potential.
But they need to charge themselves mentally at every disappointment
they face. That will come in good stead when they get the
break,” he said.
So can Ranadeb and Tiwari emege as the next faces of Bengal’s
cricket? “It’s too early. But they have the fire
and I always have faith in their potential,” Banerjee
sums up.
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