Wriddhiman Saha's 3 best knocks for India
Wriddhiman Saha, arguably one of the best Indian wicketkeepers in terms of glovesmanship, turns 39 today (October 24). He is still going strong even at the ripe age of 39, scoring crucial runs for the Gujarat Titans in the IPL as well as captaining Tripura in domestic cricket.
Saha was perhaps unlucky to be born in the era of MS Dhoni, which was a similar case for Dinesh Karthik. The Bengali cricketer, however, enjoyed a decent Test career with the national side from 2015–2017, before the emergence of Rishabh Pant.
The wicketkeeper-batter played a total of 40 Test matches for India and amassed 1353 runs at an average of 29.41. He scored three centuries and six half-centuries. While behind the stumps in red-ball cricket for his country, he registered 92 catches and 12 stumpings.
On that note, let's take a look at Wriddhiman Saha's three best knocks at the international level.
#3 104 vs West Indies
Wriddhiman Saha scored his first century for India against the West Indies in St. Lucia in 2016. The visiting team was in a difficult position in the first innings when Saha walked in to bat at 126/5. The Siliguri-born batter played an assured innings and managed to take his side above the 350-run mark.
His 104 came in 227 deliveries, and it included 13 boundaries. The West Indies batters could only accumulate 333 runs in both their innings combined, which meant that the Men in Blue would win the game by an emphatic margin. As Ravichandran Ashwin picked up a few wickets and also scored a century, Saha missed out on the Man of the Match award.
#2 106* vs Bangladesh
Wriddhiman Saha's second century in Test cricket was in the only Test against Bangladesh in their tour of India in 2017. The match was played in Hyderabad, which is the sort of pitch a player like Saha would thrive on. It was a high-scoring affair, as 1484 runs were scored in the four innings combined.
The right-handed batter's unbeaten ton was decorated with seven boundaries and a couple of sixes. India went on to declare the first innings at 687/6, soon after Saha reached the three-figure mark. Needless to say, the Virat Kohli-led side won the game comfortably.
#1 117 vs Australia
Wriddhiman Saha's best outing in India colors came against Australia in 2017 at Ranchi. The visitors had posted a score of 451, courtesy of Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell's centuries. In response, the hosts went on to post a mammoth 603 before declaring the innings.
Cheteshwar Pujara top-scored with a fantastic double century. Saha scored 117 off 233 balls and propelled the Men in Blue to a healthy lead of about 150 runs. His 199-run partnership with Pujara was a hard one to digest for the Aussie bowlers. Australia did well to score 204/6 in response, but the match ended in a draw.