Tiwary raring to go after call-up

The door may have been shut on Sourav Ganguly for the one-day challenge Down Under.

The door may have been shut on Sourav Ganguly for the one-day challenge Down Under. But Bengal will have something new to celebrate, with Manoj Tiwary being called up for national duty for the tri-nation one-day series beginning February 3.

Picked last week as the stand-by for the triangular ODI series, Tiwary will now be flown down to Australia as back-up for the injured Yuvraj Singh. The 22-year-old Bengal all-rounder expectedly reckons that he was prepared all along for this challenge.

8220;When I was picked as stand-by, I knew right away that I have to be mentally prepared for the call-up, since there can always be cases of injuries. In a way, I was ready all along for this challenge, and I am looking forward to earn my place in the team,8221; a visibly-upbeat Tiwary said after the call-up.

Young Tiwary had toured with the Indian team to Bangladesh last May where he dislocated his right shoulder and was forced out of action for months. Tiwary has since been out of the reckoning, till today8217;s call-up.

Interestingly, the gutsy batsman, popular in the domestic circuit for his aggressive approach, has lately been working on getting back to bowling leg-spin on a regular basis. 8220;I have been batting the whole season, after recovering from the injury. But I haven8217;t bowled much since recovering. Now, I am focusing on bowling regularly, and things are working out fine,8221; the fitness fanatic and fieldsman extraordinaire said.

After a lukewarm performance in the Ranji Trophy this season, in which he top-scored for Bengal with 456 runs at an average of 45.60, Tiwary shot back into prominence last month at a camp at Bangalore8217;s National Cricket Academy NCA, where renowned coach Dav Whatmore admittedly found him impressive.

8220;Whatmore told me to undergo a few minor changes, like getting my shoulder more side-on, and so on. That apart, I have been training hard at trying to bat on bouncy wickets, because that is how the wickets are in Australia,8221; the middle-order batsman explained.