Bengal Ranji Trophy captain Manoj Tiwary, who was involved in an ugly on-field altercation with Delhi counterpart Gautam Gambhir in a Ranji Trophy match on Saturday, claimed on Sunday that Gambhir had made remarks against former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly.
“He made remarks about Sourav Ganguly... I spoke to Sourav and he is very upset that his name has been dragged in the matter. We will never accept anything against Sourav Ganguly,” PTI quoted Tiwary as saying.
“Gautam Gambhir is not saying the truth. If I had done what Gambhir is saying why have I been fined 40 percent and him 70 percent,” Tiwary added.
Gambhir and Tiwary nearly came to blows on Day 3 of the Ranji Trophy match between the two sides at Delhi’s Feroz Shah Kotla stadium and umpire K Srikanth had to step in to defuse the situation. The two players were summoned for a hearing after the day’s play by Match Referee Valmick Buch.
Buch has said that a detailed report on the incident has gone to the BCCI and they will now decide the quantum of punishment.
“I don’t mind sledging but abusing someone’s mother is not right,” Tiwary said.
The incident happened in the eighth over when Partha Sarathi Bhattacharjee got out on Manan Sharma’s bowling and Tiwary came in to bat at No. 4 wearing a cap. Tiwary first took guard and was about to take strike. But he stopped the bowler and signalled at the dressing room to bring his helmet as a pacer was operating from the other end.
The Delhi players felt it was a deliberate time-wasting tactic.
Sharma ticked off Tiwari and he told him to lay off. All of a sudden, Gambhir, at first slip, got into the action and started abusing the Bengal skipper, who then retaliated.
