5 best Manoj Tiwary moments in the IPL

Manoj Tiwary called it a day on his career on Thursday, August 3. The former Indian batter represented the Men in Blue in 15 ODIs and three T20Is. While he made only 18 appearances in international cricket, he played 98 matches in his IPL career.

In 2008, Delhi Daredevils (now known as Delhi Capitals) signed Manoj Tiwary at the auction before the right-handed batter switched to the Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2010 transfer window. Tiwary remained a part of KKR until the 2013 season before coming back to Delhi in 2014. He was released by Delhi after the 2015 season.

Tiwary played the last two IPL seasons of his career for the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant and Punjab Kings in 2017 and 2018, respectively. He scored 1,695 runs, including seven half-centuries in his IPL career.

Now that he has ended his career, here's a look at Tiwary's five best moments from IPL.

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#1 Manoj Tiwary smashed the winning runs for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2012 final

The Kolkata Knight Riders faced two-time defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at their den in Chepauk in the IPL 2012 final. CSK were the favorites to win after scoring 190 runs in the first innings, but magnificent half-centuries from Manvinder Bisla and Jacques Kallis helped KKR bring the equation down to nine runs off the final over.

Shakib Al Hasan was with Manoj Tiwary in the middle, with MS Dhoni handing Dwayne Bravo the ball to bowl the final over. Shakib was on 10 off 6, while Tiwary was yet to face a ball. Tiwary and Shakib took a single each on the first two balls.

Tiwary smacked two fours off the next two balls to help KKR win the match with two balls to spare. The first was a slower one, which Tiwary smacked towards the square leg region. The second was a pull shot, again towards the square leg region.

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#2 Manoj Tiwary's role in MS Dhoni and Kevin Pietersen's banter

During the IPL 2017 season, Tiwary played with MS Dhoni for the Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS). Former RPS player Kevin Pietersen was in the commentary box for the match between Pune and the Mumbai Indians. During a chat with Tiwary on air, Pietersen asked him to tell Dhoni that he was a better golf player than him.

Tiwary did what Pietersen asked him to. Dhoni quickly replied to Pietersen, saying that he was still his first Test wicket. Pietersen shouted that it was a referral, and he was not out.

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#3 Manoj Tiwary draws attention with his unique bowling style

During the IPL 2018 season, Tiwary drew a lot of attention on social media with his unique bowling action. Playing for the Punjab Kings, Manoj bowled one over of spin against the SunRisers Hyderabad.

Tiwary's action was quite similar to that of Kedar Jadhav. It was the only over he bowled in IPL 2018, but fans still remember it to date because of the bowling action.

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#4 Manoj Tiwary's maiden IPL 50

Tiwary recorded seven half-centuries during his IPL career. The first one came against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2010 season. Playing at Eden Gardens for KKR against RCB, Tiwary smacked a 29-ball 50 while opening the batting with Brad Hodge.

KKR needed 136 runs to win that match. The pitch was challenging for the batters, but Tiwary launched an all-out assault and raced to his half-century inside 30 deliveries. He won the Player of the Match award as KKR defeated RCB by seven wickets.

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#5 Manoj Tiwary's best IPL knock

IPL 2010 was a memorable season for the Bengal-born cricketer. After recording his first half-century, he registered his career-best score of 75* against the Punjab Kings at the PCA IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali.

Tiwary came in to bat at No.4 after KKR were down to 45/2. He added 79 runs for the third wicket with captain Sourav Ganguly. Tiwary remained in the middle till the end, finishing with 75 runs off just 48 balls. His knock consisted of eight fours and two sixes.

KKR defeated PBKS by 39 runs, and Tiwary won the Player of the Match award.