Wriddhiman Saha: Enjoying all the fuss on his curtain call at the Eden

Given a choice, Wriddhiman Saha would not have approved all the fuss about the final domestic match of his career – a Ranji Trophy tie at home against Punjab. After all, he is 40 and virtually all his erstwhile Bengal mates have moved into coaching roles while his international career ended for all practical purposes in early 2022.

 However, as one of the finest wicketkeepers ever to have donned the gloves for India – not to speak of the fact that he was easily Bengal’s best export to the country’s cricket after Sourav Ganguly, Wriddhiman certainly deserved all the attention he got over the all three days. Be it the modest felicitation by the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) on the eve of the match at the Eden, the guard of honour by teammates or being chaired by them to the dressing room one last time after an innings win on Saturday – the sense of occasion was hard to miss.

 ‘’I am not an emotional person by nature. It’s been 28 years that I have had to do warm-ups…I am happy that I won’t have to do it anymore,’’ said the introvert Papali, as he is nicknamed.  There has been bit of an underlying theme of being a prodigal son about him as an apparently hurt Wriddhiman left Bengal to play for his adopted state Tripura for past two seasons – ostensibly after his commitment to his state was questioned in some quarters. The ice was finally broken after a timely intervention from Sourav Ganguly and the stumper decided to carry on for one final year with Bengal – with whom his journey started back in 2007.

The year 2022 is one which Saha, a low profile and easygoing character who no trappings of stardom, would like to forget in a hurry. His enormous patience, which once had him waiting for nearly five years between his debut Test and a second appearance (a certain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was the automatic choice till he retired from Tests in 2014), gave way when Wriddhiman confided to the media that the then coach Rahul Dravid told him upfront that they were looking beyond him and K.S.Bharat was being primed for the job.

 The culling began ahead of a home Test series against Sri Lanka when at stroke, Saha was dumped alongwith the two middle order stalwarts: Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane. Both last two batters found their way back in the squad the next year, but the 37-year-old Saha was jettisoned for good despite being fit and delivering for his IPL franchise Gujarat Titans.

 The hurt was obvious even for the resilient Saha, who earned a sobriquet Superman and was regarded as the finest keeper in the game between Dhoni’s departure and Rishabh Pant’s fulltime annointment in Tests. It’s often argued that his relatively modest batting skills had often seen Wriddhiman losing out to some other candidates, but he has three centuries and six fifties to his name and had modified his batting as an aggressive opener to suit the needs of his franchise.

  Looking back, the man from Siliguri – a bustling north Bengal town - seems to have moved on from the rejection as he is done with all formats of the game. Replying to the obvious query about how Dravid’s plainspeaking had meant curtains for him, the veteran said: ‘’I wouldn’t call it injustice. That would be selfish. Maybe it wasn’t just one person’s decision. Maybe I wasn’t capable enough or didn’t deliver as expected, so they made their choice,’’ Saha told the local media. ‘’If I had performed better, this wouldn’t have happened. I don’t dwell on it - I just take the positives from whatever comes my way.’’

Mohammed Shami, a longtime teammate both for state and country, was effusive in his X post. “Today we bid farewell to a true legend of Indian cricket, Wriddhiman Saha. His brilliant glovework and countless memorable moments, both on and off the field, have left an indelible mark. From the Ranji Trophy to the national team, his dedication and passion have inspired us all. Wishing you the best in your next chapter, Wriddhiman. Your legacy will continue to inspire generations!,'' the senior paceman said.

 Where does Wriddhiman go from here? He has already received feelers from his first-ever IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders to join them as the wicketkeeping coach but has turned it down for the time being. He has already started his own academy while it’s upto the CAB to use him in an advisory role sooner than later.