The international appearances made by Wriddhiman Saha majorly relied on upon the availability of MS Dhoni.
Whether talking about Test or ODI format, Saha only got a chance when Dhoni was on rest, but after his retirement from longest format of the game in late 2014, Saha became a regular member in that format.
Even though he missed a few games due to injury, the selectors never looked for anyone else for a permanent spot. Parthiv Patel, who came in for Saha after an injury to him against England in Tests last year, did well in his absence and followed up with match-winning innings of 143* in the Ranji Trophy final, but still, selectors preferred Saha.
After sealing his spot in longest format of the game, the 32-year-old player is now eyeing his comeback in ODI format as well with an eye on the 2019 World Cup, which will be played in England,
“My wife badly wants me to play in the World Cup. She insists that I must push harder to achieve that. I am also trying, but ultimately the decision lies with the selectors,” he said.
With MS Dhoni already giving up captaincy and selectors keeping the options for everyone, Saha does have a chance to make it to the ODI team as well, but he has to do well in List A format in domestic cricket to fulfil his wish.
The current selection panel is a keen follower of the domestic cricket and his performances at that stage would count, which will help him to make a place for himself in ODI team.
Further, Saha backed Indian team for the series against Australia and said that it is a difficult task for teams to defeat India in India,
“Beating India in India will always be tough. Australia has done well last time but I will put India ahead. India’s bench strength is very strong. The team is preparing for the 2019 World Cup. That’s why the rotation of players is happening. India has been performing well with all sets of players which is a good sign. Axar (Patel), (Yuzvendra) Chahal and Kuldeep (Yadav) playing in place of (Ravichandran) Ashwin and (Ravindra) Jadeja. They are being prepared to strengthen the bench. If the need is, they can chip in,” he added.
Saha has played a total of nine ODI’s for India. His debut came back in the year 2010 against South Africa, whereas, his last appearance came in 2014 against Sri Lanka. Incidentally, MS Dhoni was rested for the series and it was Virat Kohli who took over the reins from the then skipper of Indian cricket team.