A rare instance was seen today during a Ranji Trophy clash between Bengal and Chhattisgarh in Raipur when Bengal skipper Manoj Tiwary did a Steve Waugh.
Tiwary sent all nine fielders in the slip cordon to convert edges into the catch when Bengal took the field in the morning session. Mohammad Shami and Ashok Dinda were bowling in tandem to take last two wickets of the match.
Bengal scored 529/7 (dec) in the first innings and destroyed Chhattisgarh’s batting line-up for a mere 110 before giving them a follow-on. In the second reply, they managed only 259. Bengal won this match by innings and 160 runs.
Manoj Tiwary, who was playing his 100th FC game, said to reporters after applying such a unique fielding. “The idea was to not allow the batsman get away with any of the edges. I didn’t want to leave any gaps in between,” said Tiwary.
“The way Shami and Dinda bowled, I wanted to bring on their faces. A bowler gets a psychological advantage if he sees all the nine fielders are at the slips. It creates a happy frame,” he concluded.
