I Don't Think I Need To Change Anything Just Because People Are Criticizing My Batting: Wriddhiman Saha

Life will come a full circle for the veteran Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha during the upcoming tour of England.

Saha has been picked as the second wicketkeeper in the India squad for the sojourn in the UK that will see Virat Kohli’s men play the ICC World Test Championship final and a five-match Test series against England.

Saha is likely to warm the bench given the fact that he lost his first-choice keeper’s position to the 23-year-old Rishabh Pant during the course of the last winter.

It has been the story of Wriddhiman Saha’s stop-start international career thus far. From being an understudy of MS Dhoni during the 2011 England to tour to now being the backup keeper to a young Rishabh Pant, his career will complete a full circle on the upcoming tour.

“Obviously, there would be criticism when you don’t do well. I always try to deliver the way I’ve learnt over the years,” Wriddhiman Saha told PTI in an interview.

While Saha’s wicketkeeping skills are top-notch against both pace and spin, his batting has always come under scrutiny from fans as well as pundits.

And, that is also the major reason why he has lost his place to Rishabh Pant in the Test team. But the criticism doesn’t amuse the veteran Bengal stumper one bit.

“If people are saying my batting is not up there, maybe that’s the case… But, I don’t think I need to change anything — mental approach or technique. I just try to keep my focus and work hard,” Saha added.

‘For me, the team always comes first’- Wriddhiman Saha

The Bengal wicketkeeper also concedes that it was Rishabh Pant who made the most of his opportunities when he was sidelined from the team for the entire overseas sojourn in 2018 due to injury.

“Parthiv (Patel), DK (Dinesh Karthik), and Rishabh got chances after I got sidelined due to injury. But it was Rishabh, who made full use of the opportunity and cemented his place in the side. Maybe I played some matches here and there…” he added.

Wriddhiman Saha hasn’t really had a consistent run with the Indian team during his decade-old 38 Test career.

But a total team man that Saha is, it has never affected his relationship with any of his teammates as for him, it’s the team that always comes first

“I always approach my game with this mindset. For me, the team always comes first and I will always want my team to win. It has never affected my personal relations with anyone,” he said.

Also Read: Rishabh Pant Should Be Our First-Choice Keeper In England: Wriddhiman Saha