Eden rookie on Oz burning deck

Manoj Tiwari will not be the only Eden Gardens thoroughbred trying to turn things around for Team India in the two t20s and the ODI tri-series to follow the Adelaide Test Down Under. The joint secretary of the Cricket Association of Bengal, Biswarup Dey, too will pitch in with selection inputs and words of encouragement on his maiden tour as the manager of the Indian cricket team.

Dey, the first cricket administrator from Bengal to be appointed manager of the Indian team since Jagmohan Dalmiya lost control of the national cricket board in 2005, was gung-ho before leaving for Australia via Singapore on Monday.

“We must remember that the one-day team is very different from the Test team. It’s a lot younger and fitter and that will obviously make a lot of difference in the shorter formats,” he said.

Is the Test team too old?

Dey did not duck the bouncer. “Yes, isn’t that evident,” pat came the answer from the man who will replace Shivlal Yadav.

“The final team selection is done by the captain, coach and the manager. It will obviously help that the captain (M.S. Dhoni) is from my (east) zone and knows me well,” said the 45-year-old from Bhowanipore about his responsibilities as manager.

The presence of the captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders, Gautam Gambhir, and Manoj Tiwari in the team is another bonus.

Tiwari, the Bengal skipper, has it in him to succeed in Australia, believes the new manager. “I was listening to Sourav (Ganguly) the other day saying on commentary that it is important to stay at the wicket and weather the storm to succeed in Australia. Manoj has that kind of grit.”

Guided by his mentor Jagmohan Dalmiya, Dey has been gaining prominence in the Board of Control for Cricket in India over the last few years. He made it to the umpiring committee last year and the special coaching committee this year. He has also been seen in the presentation panel at the end of crucial matches in recent times.

Ever since the “assignment of a lifetime” became public last week, Dey had been flooded with calls and messages. But he was not overwhelmed. “I have faith in Thakur Ramakrishna and visited his birthplace Kamarpukur after getting the news. I have also been reading Swami Vivekananda’s books as usual,” said the representative of the Central Calcutta Sporting Club in the CAB.

His mentor also briefed him on how to conduct himself as manager abroad, Dey added with a smile.

His first job will be to boost the morale of the team. “I will ask Dhoni and others what they think went wrong. I will work on the basis of the inputs. They must be dying to make amends because they realise how disappointed people back home are,” said Dey.

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