WI Test call a double-edged sword for Wriddhiman Saha

New Delhi: While announcing the squad for the upcoming West Indies tour, BCCI chief selector MSK Prasad made it very clear that left-handed wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant is the future wicket-keeper of Indian cricket and will play in all the three formats of the game. But old warhorse Wriddhiman Saha has also been given a go in the Test series as the second keeper.

Saha has been brought back into the Indian set-up following his full recovery since suffering an injury during the tour of South Africa in 2018.

"We have an unwritten norm when a senior cricketer is injured, he should get a comeback opportunity. That's what we have given to Saha," Prasad said explaining the thought process about bringing in the Kolkata batsman for Windies Tests.

Saha returns to the national squad after missing 14 matches since suffering a series of injuries. First, a hamstring during the 2018 Cape Town Test ruled him out of the rest of the entire South Africa series. Then he suffered from a thumb injury during 2018 IPL and then a shoulder injury that required surgery.

The right-handed batter, however, would not be the first choice wicketkeeper in the Windies Tests. And with Pant delivering in the last Test series in England and Australia, chances are bleak that Saha will find a place in the playing XI in the two Tests against the Jason Holder-led side.

However, as the BCCI chief selector said, Saha will come into the picture only when the team management decides to rest Pant or when he suffers from an injury.