Wriddhiman Saha is learnt to have verbally asked for a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) as he doesn’t seem to be keen on representing the state any further.
The 37-year-old wicketkeeper-batter, now busy with his IPL commitments for Gujarat Titans, said nothing on record. But sources close to him claimed Saha felt “insulted” by the state association’s “attitude” towards him. He is learnt to have expressed his views clearly during a conversation with CAB president Avishek Dalmiya on Tuesday.
Both Saha and senior India pacer Mohammed Shami were included in the Bengal squad for their Ranji Trophy quarter final clash versus Jharkhand in Bangalore from June 6. While one of the CAB officials spoke to Shami to seek his availability, the sources said, none from the association got in touch with Saha before including his name in the 22-man squad which was announced on Monday. Such attitude upset Saha very much, the sources said.
Of course, Shami is still one of the Team India regulars, especially in Test cricket, while the national team doors for Saha are as good as closed. But a minimum “courtesy call” from the CAB to Saha, who has represented India in 40 Tests, before finalising the Bengal squad could have made him feel a little better, the sources said.
The sources added that what also annoyed Saha was none from the CAB making any effort to communicate with him after its joint secretary Debabrata Das questioned his commitment towards Bengal a few months ago.
Saha’s decision to skip the Ranji group phase citing “personal reasons”, hadn’t gone down well with the CAB, though the association had tried to distance itself from the joint secretary’s comments.
Till late on Tuesday night, the CAB hasn’t received anything in writing from Saha as far as the NOC is concerned.
It appears that based on Saha’s current form in the ongoing IPL for table toppers Titans, the CAB went ahead and asked its selection committee to add his name in the squad.
The association, however, tried its best to remain tight-lipped. “Any discussion that happens between a player and an organisation is strictly between that player and the organisation,” Dalmiya said.