Veteran India wicket-keeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha has fired shots at management, saying head coach Rahul Dravid suggested him to retire from international cricket. The comments came after the Bengal cricketer was dropped from the Test squad for the Sri Lanka series.
Earlier it was reported that Wriddhiman has pulled out of the ongoing Ranji Trophy as he has been told that he won’t’ be selected for the Indian team. And now after the chairman of selectors, Chetan Sharma stated that Wriddhiman Saha has been dropped, the 37-year-old revealed that he was communicated that his services are not required anymore.
“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,” he told TOI.
“Even coach Rahul Dravid suggested that I think about taking retirement,” Dravid added.
The decision to drop Wriddhiman Saha comes after his fighting knock of 61 runs against New Zealand last year with severe neck pain.
He 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, Dadi (as Sourav was referred to by Bengal players) 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,” Wriddhiman Saha added.
Meanwhile, BCCI has announced the squads for the upcoming two-match Test series against Sri Lanka, starting March 4. Rishabh Pant has been picked as the first-choice wicket-keeper while KS Bharat has been named as his deputy.
Test squad – Rohit Sharma (C), Priyank Panchal, Mayank Agarwal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Shubhman Gill, Rishabh Pant (wk), KS Bharath, R Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Sourabh Kumar, Mohd. Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Mohd. Shami, Jasprit Bumrah (VC).