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Was Wriddhiman Saha hoping against hope that he would return to the Indian Test team for the World Test Championship (WTC) final? After all, he’s been among runs in the Indian Premier League (IPL), and also had a good outing during the domestic season with Tripura.
So, as many in the cricketing fraternity thought that in the absence of KL Rahul, the selectors would consider him as a replacement given his vast experience in red-ball cricket, Saha says, he had no such thoughts in his mind.
“I am playing franchise cricket, so I am only thinking about that. Rest is not in my control, so I am not even thinking about it,” Saha said on Tuesday, during a virtual interaction.
The 38-year-old Saha hasn’t played for India since December 2021 and last year, during the tour of South Africa, head coach Rahul Dravid had told him that going forward, he would not be considered. While over the course of time, the team management has mended its policy and brought back Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara – who had also fallen out of favour – in the Test squad, based on their performances in the domestic circuit and experience, Saha hasn’t had a similar fate.
But the omissions clearly haven’t brought down his morale. In the seven Ranji Trophy innings for Tripura, Saha scored 313 runs at an average of 52.16, while in the ongoing IPL, he has amassed 273 runs in 11 outings at an average of 27.30. Throughout the tournament, he has opened the innings with Shubman Gill and even brought up a fifty in just 20 balls against Lucknow Super Giants in Ahmedabad last Sunday.
Saha understands that he is at the last leg of his cricketing career, and there’s not much to look forward to, but he wants to hang in there, simply because he’s ‘still enjoying the game’.
“You can say that I am almost at the fag end of my cricketing career. When I started playing, I enjoyed the game and that’s why I continued with it. As long as I enjoy that – be it in domestic cricket or in the IPL – and can contribute to the team’s success, I will try and continue. Whether teams pick me or not is for later, but I can just focus on my job,” he said with a smile.
Over the last couple of months, Saha and KS Bharat, who will be travelling to England next month for the WTC final, have been team-mates at Gujarat Titans and being a senior campaigner, Saha has passed on his knowledge to the young gun, who’s slowly finding his feet in international cricket.
“Bharat and I have been part of the national camp and the India A team. So, we have discussed a lot of things in terms of keeping drills, and this year, too, we have spoken at length about keeping, batting and how to approach different situations. And, it’s not just with Bharat, I try to have these words with whichever youngster I converse with. That has been the motto of the team,” Saha said.
“With Kona (Bharat), we discussed how things went on the keeping front in the last few series and what he needs to work on. When we do our drills together, these are the aspects that we talk about. Step by step, he is working on those areas and will gradually improve…”
Despite playing 40 Tests for India, Saha hasn’t featured in a Test in England, but he has toured the country with India A team, and having seen the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni handle such situations, the seasoned campaigner has shared his learning with Bharat. “I have not played in England for the Indian team, but I have played with the A team, so I have that experience of being on tour with the team. I have seen how Dhoni bhai or Rishabh (Pant) handled such situations. So, I have shared those experiences with Kona, and hopefully, he will work on those areas and do well for the team…”
While a few members of the Indian team, who are not part of the IPL, will travel to England later this month, Bharat and Ishan Kishan are expected to join the team once the IPL is over. And despite not being with the team, Saha would try to ensure that he backs Bharat to the tilt before he boards the flight to London.
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