Tiwary set to take his first big step

Being typecast as a wannabe early in your career certainly does have a number of drawbacks,especially if the person you aspire to be has amassed unprecedented levels of success.

Being typecast as a wannabe early in your career certainly does have a number of drawbacks,especially if the person you aspire to be has amassed unprecedented levels of success. Sporting a long mane with similar highlights to that of his state-mate and Indian skipper MS Dhoni,from when he made his entry into international cricket,and a similar style of play,Saurabh Tiwary has forever played with a Dhoni-clone tag hanging around his neck.

And while the 20-year-old is still a long way from emerging from his idols shadow,Tiwary has managed to create a niche for himself at least in the shortest format of the game. What will certainly help is that apart from throwing his weight behind him,his skipper has also revealed seeing similarities with the path that the Jharkhand youngster has tread upon and the one he has walked. He is an aggressive character and wants to play the cricket that he knows. He has spent a lot of time at the nets. He doesnt like going to the gym and eats a lot. I used to be the same, says Dhoni.

It was during IPL III that the cricketing world set their eyes upon the hard-hitting prowess of Tiwary. And soon after,the former under-19 World Cup winner found himself being fast-tracked into the Indian ODI team. But though he has been part of the national squad for a couple of tournaments now,an international debut has eluded Tiwary,who has raked up an impressive record for his state at both first-class and List A cricket.

Dhoni,however,is confident that his time has finally arrived. He was there when we played some tough cricket against Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Its an ideal time for us to give him an opportunity in the final eleven. While Tiwarys success in the T20 format have come while batting higher up the order for the Mumbai Indians,Dhoni believes that the dangly left-hander is better suited in the lower middle-order. He is better off at No.6 or 7 as he likes to go after the bowlers. He backs himself to play the big shot, says Dhoni.

Talking about the difficulties of making it to the national team while playing for a smaller state,Dhoni is confident that the youngster has the right qualities to replicate his achievements in domestic cricket at the highest level. Proper guidance with a little exposure,he can be really successful, he says. With Dhoni himself having acknowledged the promise that his aspirant has displayed,Tiwary can now just concentrate on emulating his hero.