‘Not hurt, have deep respect for Saha’: Dravid reacts to Wriddhiman’s statement

India’s head coach Rahul Dravid is not “hurt” by Wriddhiman Saha revealing the “difficult” conversation that the two had about his future as he firmly believes that the veteran keeper-batter “deserved the honesty and clarity” which was provided to him.

Saha, whose India career has come to a halt, recently told the media that Dravid asked him to consider retirement during a private conversation after the South Africa series last month. Dravid said his intention behind talking to Saha was to ensure he has a clear picture of where he stands and he does not regret it.

“I’m actually not hurt at all. I have deep respect for Wriddhi and his achievements and his contribution to Indian cricket. My conversation came from that place. I think he deserved honesty and clarity,” Dravid replied at the end of the T20 series against the West Indies which India won 3-0 on Sunday.

‘No set formula but we’re clear about T20 WC team combination’
Finding the perfect combination can be tricky and there is no set formula, but India head coach Rahul Dravid says he and skipper Rohit Sharma are pretty clear about the team for the T20 World Cup in Australia in less than eight months’ time.

The former captain, who took over from Ravi Shastri after India’s group stage exit in last year’s T20 World Cup in UAE, will have his first big challenge in Australia. Dravid said he and Rohit understand what should be the team combination for the mega-event.

The T20I series against West Indies was India’s first in a packed calendar in the build-up to the World Cup and they next take on Sri Lanka in an identical three-match rubber in four days’ time. “You don’t want to cast your net too wide. We don’t also want to restrict ourselves to just 15 players.

We want to give players opportunities, ensure that by the time we get to the World Cup, some of our guys have played at least 10-15-20 games,” Dravid explained. Kishan opened in all the three matches of the series but the Jharkhand wicketkeeper-batter failed to impress with just 71 runs at an average of 23.66. Dravid said the youngsters would not be judged on one series or one bad game. “This is a tough format. We are asking them to play high risk cricket. We’re asking them to play shots all the time. And we don’t judge them on a few games. It’s not the way, it’s done."

Struggling Kishan gets Dravid’s support
Giving full support to IPL 2022 auction’s most expensive buy Kishan, Dravid said: “Ishan has been picked on his potential, his performance. Yes, you cannot specify this many games. Sometimes it’s combination, sometimes it’s injuries.”

“Never always give a player the same number of games, there cannot be a written number in stone whether it’s seven or six matches.” “Whether it’s Ruturaj Gaikwad or Avesh Khan today. We are not judging them on one game. They’re here because they perform and deserve to be here,” the former captain stressed.

Venkatesh making strides as all-rounder
In the absence of an unfit Pandya, India have tried out the likes of Venkatesh Iyer and Shardul Thakur and it’s the former who has impressed the head coach.

“I know he plays a different role (opener) for his IPL franchise but we’re very clear with what is the kind of role that we see him filling in our situation... Obviously our top three isn’t really a spot, because these guys have established and have been performing very well in the top three,” he said.

100 days as India coach: Roller-coaster ride
Having started off his stint as India coach with a 3-0 sweep over New Zealand last year, it’s been a roller-coaster ride so far for Dravid.

Be it their back-to-back Test and ODI series defeats in South Africa, the controversy surrounding Virat Kohli’s captaincy or the recent saga around Wriddhiman Saha’s sacking from Test cricket, Dravid summed it all up by saying it’s been a “learning experience”.

“I learnt a lot. I’m not stressed too much about the results and just want the team to get better and move in the right direction,” Dravid, who completed 100 days as coach on February 17, said. “South Africa was a reality check for us, especially in the one-day format. In Tests, while it was disappointing, things could have gone our way with a bit of luck,” he conceded.

West Indies, a work in progress
“Yes we lost 3-0 but the guys put their hands up and gave a good account of themselves. I don’t think we should be disgraced by wha