Wriddhiman Saha's 3 best catches in the IPL
Gujarat Titans (GT) wicket-keeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha has been an integral part of their squad over the past couple of seasons with his batting in the powerplay stage of the innings. The 38-year-old from West Bengal scored 3187 runs at an average of 31.70 last season and was instrumental in GT winning the title in their debut season.
However, the wicket-keeper batsman has struggled with the bat this season, averaging 16.78 at a strike rate of 123.77 in nine matches.
Wriddhiman Saha has also represented India in 40 Test matches and played a few crucial knows in dire situations, showcased by his three centuries while batting predominantly at no. 6 or no. 7.
Despite Saha being a key contributor with the bat for his franchise and the national side over the years, his rise to fame has been largely thanks to his incredible wicket-keeping skills. He has been arguably the best wicket-keeper in the country over the past decade, with many sensational diving catches and brilliant reflexes displayed by him when wicket-keeping to spin bowling.
Possessing great dexterity and agility, Saha's wicket-keeping skills have been praised by all quarters, be it experts or fans. He has completed 92 catches and 12 stumpings in his Test match career and 108 dismissals in 153 matches in the IPL.
With that said, let's look at Wriddhiman Saha's three best catches of his IPL career.
# 1. Wriddhiman Saha's high catch against RCB in IPL 2017
Wriddhiman Saha was part of the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in 2017 and produced one of the best high catches of the season against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Holkar Stadium in Indore.
Saha's athleticism was on full display as he kept his eye on the ball, despite it going sky-high and swirling in the air, to complete the catch by diving in the last instance.
His brilliance dismissed Mandeep Singh off the bowling of Varun Aaron, breaking a 46-run partnership between him and AB de Villiers and helping restrict RCB to a mediocre total of 148-4 in their 20 overs. Punjab won the game in just the 15th over with eight wickets in hand.
Wriddhiman Saha was part of the PBKS squad from 2014 to 2017 and played a vital role in the team reaching the final in 2014, including a brilliant century in the final against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
# 2. Wriddhiman Saha's reflex catch against CSK in IPL 2023
Gujarat Titans (GT) wicket-keeper and opener Wriddhiman Saha took an excellent reflex catch off the bowling of Rashid Khan to dismiss English all-rounder Ben Stokes in the first match of the season against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Ahmedabad on March 31.
The catch was made difficult due to the skiddy nature of Rashid's bowling and a thick outside edge off Stokes's bat leading to a huge deflection. Saha showed tremendous reflexes and quick movement of the hands to hold on to the catch.
The dismissal came at a crucial stage in the game when CSK were coasting at 70-2 in the eighth over and helped restrict them to 178-7 in their 20 overs.
The Titans chased down the target with relative ease with five wickets and four balls to spare to get their campaign underway.
# 3. Wriddhiman Saha's diving catch against DC in IPL 2023
Gujarat Titans (GT) wicket-keeper Wirddhiman Saha's latest acrobatic effort came against the Delhi Capitals at the Narendra Modi Stadium on May 3.
GT seamer Mohammed Shami was in the middle of a sensational spell and produced the outside edge off DC batter Manish Pandey, which Saha dove at full stretch to his right to pull off one of the best catches of the season.
At 38 years old, Saha showed tremendous agility and flexibility to dive full length and hold on to the catch. Saha's brilliance gave Shami his third wicket in his spell, helping reduce DC to 22-4
Despite Saha's incredible effort, the Titans could not chase down DC's score of 130 and fell short by five runs.