Wriddhiman Saha remained in the news after the announcement of India's Test squad for the Sri Lanka home series where the wicketkeeper batter was left out. Post which Wriddhiman revealed that the team management headed by head coach Rahul Dravid had told him to think about "retirement" as he won't be considered for selection henceforth. And now India's former all-rounder Irfan Pathan has come up with his take on the matter. Pathan took to Twitter to share his opinion and also seeked netizens opinions as well.
“An honest coach Or someone just gives hope even after knowing that a player doesn’t fit in the scheme of things? Your opinion????? For me an honest coach ALWAYS!” Pathan wrote on Twitter.
Earlier, Saha while talking about his conversation with India's head coach, said: "The team management had told me that I would not be considered henceforth. I could not tell this so long as I was part of the India team setup," an explosive Wriddhiman told mediapersons on Saturday (February 19).
"Even coach Rahul Dravid suggested that I think about taking retirement," he spilled the beans on classified conversations with head coach," he added.
The batter also hit out at BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, whom he claimed had assured him that he shouldn’t worry about his place in the team.
‘‘When I hit an unbeaten 61 taking a pain-killer in the first Test against New Zealand in Kanpur last November, Dada congratulated me over Whatsapp. He even mentioned that I should not worry about anything so long as he is at the helm of the BCCI. Such a message from the board president really boosted my confidence. But I failed to understand why everything changed so fast,” Saha had earlier said.
Bengal-born Saha is one of the best wicketkeepers in the country currently. However, he failed to secure a spot in the side due to his lukewarm returns with the bat recently. In 2021, 37-year-old Saha only got to play 2 Tests. Rishabh Pant has been preferred over the veteran for a long time and judging by the current situation, the future of Saha looks bleak.
Earlier, India's squad for the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanak was announced by BCCI the selection committee took some tough calls. Four senior players - Ajinkya Rahane, Wriddhiman Saha, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Ishant Sharma have been dropped for the two-match series. While Chairman of selectors Chetan Sharma stated that the doors are not closed for Pujara and Rahane, he did give a hint on the future of Saha.
"Look, age isn't something we give a lot of credence. On what grounds Wriddhi has been dropped, we can't tell you. But there comes a time when you start thinking about youngsters when you don't play for long. Also I don't know why Saha is not playing Ranji Trophy. That's not my jurisdiction and that's what state unit must look into," Chetan said.
Chetan, while addressing a virtual press conference on Saturday, implied that the board is now thinking about youngsters.
For Sharma, everyone who is on the bench for a long time needs to go back to Ranji trophy and prove what they have to offer.
"That's why we want players to go and play Ranji Trophy if you are not playing international or rested due to workload management or injured and undergoing rehabilitation," he added.
Meanwhile, the first Test will be played from March 4 at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh and the second Test will be played from March 12 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru.
India’s Test squad: Rohit Sharma (capt), Mayank Agarwal, Priyank Panchal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant (wk), KS Bharat (wk), R Ashwin (subject to fitness), Ravindra Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah (vice-captain), Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Saurabh Kumar.
