Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh believes that the Indian team should stick with Wriddhiman Saha as the second Wicket-Keeper in their squad following Rishabh Pant’s heroics in the last two series against Australia and England respectively.
Saha last played a Test match in Adelaide during the tour of Australia. India lost that match by eight wickets and also registered their lowest score in Tests in the fourth innings. He was replaced by Pant in the next match and hasn’t been able to make his way back into the XI since then.
Harbhajan, however, believes that Saha is better than many of the young wicket-keepers right now and that India should persist with him as the backup option for Pant. He also mentioned that the team management should give Saha enough opportunities too, so that he isn’t short of gametime.
“It is a difficult choice but if I have to choose, I will stick with Wriddhiman Saha. He has been with the team for a long time. He is a very safe keeper and has very good hands. Rishabh Pant has grown in stature, not only as a batsman but as a keeper as well and will keep improving as he keeps on playing,” Harbhajan said on Star Sports network.
“I feel for some time Wriddhiman Saha will have to be kept along with the team. I agree he is 35 years old but the sort of fitness he has, I feel he is still better than most of the youngsters. It is good that we have quite a few options – we have KL Rahul and the bold Ishan Kishan,” he added.
However, former India batsman Aakash Chopra pointed out that playing Pant allows India to field five bowlers and that isn’t the case if they play Saha. Then Harbhajan suggested about grooming Ishan Kishan as the second wicket-keeping option.
“If you watch closely, Rishabh provides the balance to the team which allows you to play five bowlers because he is a proper batsman. But when you look towards Wriddhi, the captain is not that confident of playing five bowlers,” Chopra said.
“If the thinking is like that, then I feel Ishan Kishan can be a very good choice because he is a strong batsman and a match-winner. He is also a similar kind of player who plays shots and keeps well also,” Harbhajan stated.
