The last year and a half have not been easy for Wriddhiman Saha. From being India’s first-choice Test wicketkeeper, he lost his place to the dynamic Rishabh Pant and at the beginning of this year, was informed by the management, he was no longer in the scheme of things as the team wants to look ahead. His integrity was questioned by a Cricket Association of Bengal official during the domestic season and to top it all off, he went unsold on day 1 of the IPL mega auction. Just when things started to look gloomy, Saha got a new lease of life when he was picked up by Gujarat Titans for ₹1.9 crore on the second day of the auction.
Saha’s struggles, however, did not end there. He was not the first-choice wicketkeeper for GT. It was Australia’s Matthew Wade who played the first few matches. But after the left-hander failed to make an impact, GT captain Hardik Pandya walked up to Saha and asked the veteran cricketer to open the batting with Shubman Gill.
That was just the opportunity Saha needed. After missing the first five league matches, Saha scored 317 runs for GT in 11 matches that included three half-centuries. After GT won the IPL in the first attempt, Saha credited Hardik Pandya for his turnaround and said he can never ‘forget his contribution’ in bringing his confidence back.
“Hardik showed faith in all those players who were released by the different franchises, whom nobody believed in. I was unsold (on day 1 of mega auction), and was not getting chances in the beginning. Then he came and said I need to take the responsibility of an opener. I got my confidence back. He provided me with a stage to prove myself. Can never forget his contribution. I tried my best to repay his faith. In fact, everybody in the team fulfilled their duties, that’s what you need to become a champion side,” Saha told Bengali daily Anandabazar Patrika.
The 37-year-old said he has seen a sea change in Hardik. Giving an insight into Hardik’s leadership skills, Saha said Hardik knew how to handle everyone with care. He never used to lose his cool even when somebody had made a mistake in the field.
“Hardik knows how to manage a side. A captain’s job is to stay connected with everyone, and understand their game, Hardik had no dearth of that. He has gone through a sea change. He used to be restless earlier but has changed completely now. He never lost his cool on the field, always showed faith in everyone,” Saha added.
Saha said his job was to provide as many good starts as possible to the side in IPL. “A captain will always be happy when the openers perform. The biggest thing was, that he believed in me. Hardik used to say if we don’t get off to good starts in multiple matches then it will put the dugout under a lot of pressure. So, my job was to get the team off to a good start,” he added.