Indian wicketkeeper-batter, Ishan Kishan opted out of the upcoming Duleep Trophy, leaving the selectors in a predicament. Consequently, the selectors decided to choose Abhishek Porel for wicket-keeping instead of Wriddhiman Saha, who is an experienced gloveman and top batter. When asked about this decision, Jayanta Dey, a Tripura selector, stated that he contacted Saha who rejected the offer.
In Jayanta Dey’s words, “To be fair to Wriddhiman, he said that Duleep Trophy is for India hopefuls. If I am never going to play for India, then it doesn’t make sense in preventing a youngster from making a case. Hence we selected Abhishek Porel, who was the third choice.” Meanwhile, Saha had a great season with the gloves in the 2023 IPL tournament, where he took nine catches and two stumpings, and finished second in the wicketkeeper standings after Ishan Kishan.
Sources revealed that Kishan would have obtained the captaincy as a senior player but informed the selectors that he was not interested in playing in the Duleep Trophy. The East Zone selection committee member stated, “Since he was in the India squad for WTC final and KS Bharat, the man who kept wickets is playing for South Zone, we asked Zonal selection committee convenor Debasish Chakraborty to tell us if we could select Kishan… Chakraborty got in touch with Ishan over the phone and came back and told us that he is not interested in playing Duleep Trophy. We were not told if he has an injury or not. Just that he doesn’t want to play.”
While the selection of Abhishek Porel for the Duleep Trophy came as a shock to many, the selectors maintain that it was a fair decision considering Saha’s approach. Despite the disappointment of some fans, the selectors are confident that the Duleep Trophy will still be an exciting competition.
