Abhimanyu replaces Tiwary as Bengal captain in all formats

Top-order batsman Abhimanyu Easwaran was on Thursday named captain of the Bengal cricket team in place of Manoj Tiwary in all the three formats for the upcoming season.

Tiwary, who has played 12 ODIs and three T20 Internationals, had succeeded Laxmi Ratan Shukla in 2015-16 season and led the side to Ranji Trophy semifinals in the 2017-18.

The Sourav Ganguly-led Cricket Association of Bengal wanted a split captaincy, giving Tiwary the option to lead in the shorter formats while promoting Abhimanyu for the Ranji Trophy.

But the 33-year-old Tiwary declined the proposal and instead wanted to focus on his batting, while backing Abhimanyu for the upcoming season.

Cricket Association of Bengal Joint Secretary Avishek Dalmiya said: "The selectors initially had thought of a split captaincy where they looked at the option of having Abhimanyu Easwaran lead the team in four-day format, while Manoj Tiwary will continue in 50-over and T20s.

"We had discussed this with Manoj (Tiwary) and he feels ...