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IPL 2021 would have been better off in UAE: Saha

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Last updated on 22 May 2021 | 11:16 AM
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IPL 2021 would have been better off in UAE: Saha

The India wicketkeeper had recently recovered from Covid-19 and is set to join the Indian team in Mumbai ahead of the England tour

India wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha, who recently recovered from Covid-19, has questioned the effectiveness of the bio-secure bubble, further adding that it would have been better if the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 was held in the UAE after the country hosted the 2020 edition without any glitches. The IPL was suspended on May 4 after many players, including Saha were infected with the coronavirus after a bio-bubble breach.

Saha played just a couple of matches for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in IPL 2021.

"It's the job of the stakeholders to assess it, but the only thing I would say is that there was not a single individual during our training in UAE (last year), not even a ground staff," Saha told PTI.

"Here there would be people, kids peeping from nearby walls. I don't want to comment much but we saw how the IPL went off smoothly in UAE in 2020 and then it started in India this year with cases on the rise," he added.

On the bio-bubble, he added, "I don't know what would have happened, but definitely I feel it would have been better off in UAE this time as well. It's for the stakeholders to look into it."

Saha, who is set to join Team India in Mumbai ahead of the departure to England said that he had recovered well after he tested for Covid-19 on May 4. "I'm doing all normal activities, there's no fatigue, body ache or any weakness. But I will actually get to know how my body is coping when I get into actual match training mode."

Recalling his battle with the virus, he said: "I had a slight fever for the first couple of days, lost smell after five days but it returned within four days. "It was about spending time with family, friends (virtually), catching up with some light-hearted movies and keeping myself in a good space. I was never mentally disturbed or down. I was just being normal.

"Currently, I'm doing some fitness routine at home but the actual fitness training will start after I join the team in Mumbai," he concluded.

'I don't need to change just because people criticise my batting'

"Obviously, there would be criticism when you don't do well. I always try to deliver the way I've learnt over the years," Saha said.

Despite being steady with the bat, somehow Saha's willow wielding hasn't exactly inspired the highest confidence and the question raised doesn't amuse him one bit.

"If people are saying my batting is not up there, maybe that's the case... But, I don't think I need to change anything -- mental approach or technique. I just try to keep my focus and work hard," the reticent Bengal stumper said.

He accepts that post Dhoni's retirement and his spate of injuries during the whole 2018 season, it was Pant, who had best utilised the chances that came along. "Parthiv (Patel), DK (Dinesh Karthik) and Rishabh got chances after I got sidelined due to injury. But it was Rishabh, who made full use of the opportunity and cemented his place in the side. Maybe I played some matches here and there..."

India will be playing six Test matches in England over the next three months and while Pant starting during the World Test Championship is a no-brainer, Saha might fancy that some chance will come along his way with five games against England starting August.

"I think representing India itself is a big motivation, and it will be much bigger if an opportunity comes my way," Saha, who has played 38 Tests, scoring 1,251 runs and accounting for 103 dismissals, said.

"Ultimately, everyone faces this kind of a challenge in a small or bigger way. But being with the team and representing your nation from 1.4 billion is far bigger."

A team man to the core, Saha believes that despite his 11 years of stop-start Test career, he has never had any bitter feelings of being left out in the cold at times. "I always approach my game with this mindset. For me, the team always comes first and I will always want my team to win. It has never affected my personal relations with anyone," he said.

Looking ahead to the WTC final, Saha said the onus would be on the batsmen. "Looking into the English conditions, batsmen will face the maximum challenge. Pace bowlers always get the advantage there. So the batsmen will hold the key. The team who bats better will be ahead," he said.

Asked to compare Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson, his Sunrisers Hyderabad captain in the IPL, Saha said: "Kane is always cool-headed and goes about his job in a calm and composed manner. But it's about the challenges on-the-field rather than the off-the-field talks."

(With inputs from PTI)

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