While Wriddhiman Saha is unlucky, his axing wasn't uncalled for

The understanding of the difference between fairness and rightness is required to judge whether Wriddhiman Saha’s axing from the Indian team was correct or not. The veteran wicketkeeper-batter has been in headlines lately due to multiple reasons. However, the root of all sagas is his omission from the Indian team for the upcoming home Test series against Sri Lanka at home.

The BCCI selectors took some big calls as alongside Saha, veterans like Ishant Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Ajinkya Rahane were also excluded. While the trio faced the axe due to their dismal performances in recent outings, the same thing can’t be said for Saha. The veteran wicketkeeper-batter has played a handful of games since the start of 2018, nine to be précised.

In this period, the Indian team played 42 Tests and Rishabh Pant was behind the wickets in the majority of these clashes. However, Saha continued to be with the Indian squad whenever fit and available. This is because a Test team needs at least two wicketkeepers, in case there’s an injury to the first-choice gloveman. Hence, Saha did lose his place to Pant but remained in the squad as his back-up.

Now, let’s talk about the period before the arrival of Rishabh Pant. MS Dhoni’s sudden retirement from Test cricket midway through the 2014-15 tour of Australia opened the gates for Saha. As the Bengal-born player had been Dhoni’s back-up in squad, he automatically became the first-choice keeper in Test matches.

Wicketkeeping – A thankless but important job

While there were questions regarding his contribution with the bat, there were hardly any complaints as far as wicketkeeping is concerned. Be it taking breathtaking catches and effecting lightning-fast stumpings, Saha was a bowler’s delight behind the stumps. Now, one many not recognize but the role of a wicketkeeper is massive in Test matches.

With best batters from a nation being in action and scoring rate not being a major factor, bowlers have to toil really hard to get wickets. On a good track, a batter would commit mistake once in a blue moon. Hence, if there’s an edge and the keeper is not able to grab it, the course of the entire game can be changed.

Specifically in case of spinners, batters tend to come down the track in order to counter the turn. However, if a good keeper is in action, one would hesitate leaving the crease even for a bit and the same factor works in the bowler’s favour. Hence, these are the reasons why teams should prioritize glovework ahead of batting prowess while selecting a keeper.

Owing to these factors, Saha was a vital cog of the Test team between 2015 and 2018. Not to forget, he has also made some major contributions with the bat. As far as his numbers are concerned, Saha has 1353 runs in 40 Tests at an average of 29.41. He has also smashed three tons and six half-centuries. While these numbers aren’t really exciting, Saha’s place in the team didn’t come under scrutiny thanks to his brilliance behind the stumps.

Beginning of the Rishbah Pant era

However, things changed in 2018 when Saha suffered a hamstring injury midway through the tour of South Africa. His absence gave Parthiv Patel and Dinesh Karthik a handful of opportunities, which they couldn’t grab. Then arrived Rishabh Pant during the 2018 tour of England, where he scored a six off the second ball he faced in Test cricket.

A century in England and Australia inside his first 10 Test appearances meant Rishabh Pant announced himself in grand style. However, his glovework earned several criticisms. Owing to the same, the team managemnet went back to Saha for the home Test series against South Africa and Bangladesh in 2019. However, his mediocre shows with the bat made the team management looked back to Pant for overseas tours.

The debate of who should be India’s first-choice Test keeper was laid to rest during the 2020-21 tour of Australia. Pant sealed the spot with sensational performances, both with the bat and gloves, as India recorded a historic 2-1 win. However, even after that period, Saha continued to be in the squad.

As Pant was rested for home Test series against New Zealand last year, Saha took the field and even scored a crucial fifty in the drawn Test in Kanpur. As Pant came back for the subsequent Test series against South Africa, Saha went back in the benches and then the selectors decided to drop the 37-YEAR-OLD for the Sri Lanka series, giving a chance to uncapped keeper KS Bharat.

Wriddhiman Saha – The unlucky bloke determined to serve Team India 

So, if we have to summarize it, Saha, after Dhoni’s exit, became an instrumental part of the Test team. Rishabh Pant’s arrival sent him in the benches but he remained in the squad, trained hard, kept himself fit and still seems determined to serve the national team. Despite doing pretty well, majorly with the gloves, in limited chances, the selectors decided to axe him.

As revealed by Saha, team’s current head coach Rahul Dravid indirectly suggested him to retire from international cricket. One has to feel for the Bengal keeper as his outburst in public isn’t shocking either. After all, many other prominent figures in Indian cricket have also come out hard at selectors after not getting chances.

The difference between fairness and rightness

Hence, calling Saha’s axing ‘unfair’ might not be too wrong. However, this doesn’t really mean selectors made a wrong call. Does it? With the World Test Championship being underway, stakes are incredibly high in all Test matches. Also, Saha (37) was a back-up for Pant (24). Let’s assume Saha continues to be in the scheme of things and Pant doesn’t sustain any injury in the next two years, which is possible by all means.

This means the southpaw will most likely feature in all Test matches that Team India plays. And then Pant gets inured during a tour of Australia, England or South Africa. In this case, India would be forced to field a 40-year-old wicketkeeper, which is not ideal. With all due respect to Saha, wicketkeeping takes a lot of toll on the body and the Bengal star has a history with hamstring injuries.

The need of looking at the future 

Hence, there’s an obvious need of grooming a young wicketkeeper, who can fill Pant’s shoes at times. Now, many are of the belief that ‘not age but performances should be considered while selecting players.’ However, what value a player, who’s in the fag end of his career, is adding if he’s warming the benches. Guys like Shoaib Malik (40) and James Anderson (39) continue to feature in international cricket. However, they are among the regular faces in the playing XI, which is not the case as far as Saha is concerned.

Another dimension of this episode is the need of looking at the future. The downfall of Sri Lanka in international cricket is the greatest example why sticking at the present is not always a great idea. The trio of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Tillakaratne Dilshan continued to do well even in the twilight of their careers.

However, they retired around the same time and since then; Sri Lankan team is stuck in a loop of transitions. Although Saha’s case is different as we are talking about just an individual, the point is the need of a wider perspective is necessary. Hence, calling out the selectors and team management for dropping Saha would be harsh.

So, this seems the end of Saha as far as international cricket is concerned. He might not go down among some of the greats of the game but nothing can defy the fact that he was instrumental in India’s rise as a formidable force in Test cricket. Although he didn’t get a fitting farewell which he deserved, sports is reality and not a Bollywood film, where the protagonist always ends on a high note.