"Series win no less than a World Cup triumph" - Wriddhiman Saha reflects on the triumph Down Under
Veteran Indian wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha has said that Team India's incredible series win Down Under felt akin to winning the World Cup.
After the visitors were annihilated at the Adelaide Oval, bowled out for a paltry 36 - their lowest ever score in Tests, Team India coped with the absence of six first-team regulars, one of them being captain Virat Kohli, to script a memorable series win.
During an interaction with PTI, Wriddhiman Saha, who played in that Adelaide debacle, explained the never-give-up mindset of the injury-beset visitors that helped them triumph against all odds.
"It (series win) was no less than a World Cup triumph. We faced challenges in putting up 11 players, so it was an outstanding feat, an outstanding team effort," Wriddhiman Saha said.
Considering the challenges faced by the visitors this time, Saha opined that the series win is probably one of the team's finest ever away from home, saying in this regard:
"Definitely, it will be one of our greatest series wins. It was about instilling self-belief and going session by session. The series win last time also played in our minds."
"Unlike Virat, he never shows any excitement," Wriddhiman Saha lauds Ajinkya Rahane's captaincy
In the absence of Virat Kohli, stand-in skipper Ajinkya Rahane impressively led a depleted and battered Team India to complete a historic series win that very few saw coming.
Talking about the captaincy styles of both men, Wriddhiman Saha said while Kohli is expressive and tends to wear his emotions on his sleeves, Rahane is different but keeps his cool in crunch moments.
"He goes about his job with a cool head. Like Virat, he too has full of belief in his players. Unlike Virat, he never shows any excitement. Approach is a bit different, Rahane stays calm always, never loses temper. He knows well how to motivate the players. That is his success mantra," Wriddhiman Saha asserted.
Both Wriddhiman Saha and Rishabh Pant have been named in Team India's squad for the first two Tests of the home series against England, which starts next month. But it remains to be seen who gets the nod to play as the specialist keeper.