IND v ENG: ‘Wriddhiman Saha Is India’s No. 1 Wicket-Keeper’
Dec 1, 2016 at 5:03 PM
The BCCI chairman of selectors MSK Prasad feels Indian cricket team has a good bench strength now which is quite a thing to be proud of.
Prasad laid emphasis on the fact MS Dhoni-led India played with the second string bowling against New Zealand in last month’s ODI series and performed exceptionally well. The chairman of selectors stated that developing a good bench strength is primary concern and objective right now, which seems to be turning out well. He also hailed all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin for his brilliant performance against England in the first three tests.
“Ashwin times the ball really well and I wouldn’t be surprised if people mistake him for V.V.S. Laxman,” Prasad said.
“He’s not just a bowler anymore. He’s also a dependable batsman. You can see that Kohli’s relaxed when Ashwin bats. We believe that the stability he brings to batting will rub on players like Ravindra Jadeja and Jayant.”
India’s comeback man Parthiv Patel played really well in the third Test against England. Although Prasad feels Parthiv is better than Wriddhiman Saha as a package but the latter is still the best wicket-keeper when it comes to Tests.
“He has done well for the past couple of years both in terms of batting and wicketkeeping. His glovework is better than before. I wouldn’t say that he’s better than Saha. Saha is still the No. 1 wicketkeeper for India. We also have Naman Ojha and Dinesh Karthik, but Parthiv’s a wholesome package,” he added.
“Also, it helped that he’s a left-hander. We thought, being a left-hander, he can handle Adil Rashid and Zafar Ansari better. He can bat at any position to.”
Prasad has also declared KL Rahul fully fit for the final two Tests against England.