We know how to get Pujara, says Saha

Rajkot, March 8

Wriddhiman Saha is confident that Bengal’s unheralded bunch of bowlers has seen enough of Cheteshwar Pujara on television to plot his dismissal when they take on Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy final.

This is the first time in his 13-year-old First-Class career that Saha will be playing a Ranji final and Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar and Ishan Porel should benefit from his advice on how to dismiss Pujara on a track where he has played some of his marathon innings. “Whoever fights till the end will win. They (Bengal teammates) all watch international matches. They know how to get Pujara out,” Saha said.

Dinda’s shoes

His friend Ashoke Dinda was dropped from the squad for disciplinary reasons but what Saha finds heartening is that the young trio of Ishan, Akash and Mukesh have more than fulfilled the void left by the veteran pacer. “Earlier, the past teams reached the knockouts on the basis of performance of a few players. For example, Ashoke Dinda used to take the bulk of wickets without much support from the other end, the team was stuck in a way. Now everyone is contributing,” Saha said. “The bowlers are also contributing with the bat. Match-winning performances have come in the batting department. There is good camaraderie too which helps,” the veteran of 102 First-Class games said.

Excited

On a personal front, Saha is excited that he and nine others will play their first Ranji final, and said he and Mohammed Shami had been tracking the team’s performance from New Zealand. “First time, I am getting to play the final and it doesn’t happen regularly. In our team, only Manoj Tiwary has had this experience (2005-06 and 2006-07),” said Saha. — PTI