India coach Rahul Dravid beaks silence after Wriddhiman Saha’s claim of ‘indirectly being told to retire’

Team India head coach Rahul Dravid has shared his thoughts on Wriddhiman Saha’s recent outburst where the wicketkeeper-batter claimed that Dravid indirectly called him to consider retirement from Test cricket.

Saha has recently revealed that Dravid had asked him to ‘take some other decision’ during a private conversation after the South Africa series. Notably, Saha was not named in the Test squad announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the upcoming home series against Sri Lanka.

However, Dravid shared his take when he was asked about how he felt regarding Saha’s revelation. Dravid said he was not hurt after how all the things have panned out, mentioning he has immense respect for Wriddhi.

“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 said in the post-match presser after India’s 3-0 series win over West Indies on Sunday.

Dravid said that sometimes one has to be involved in difficult conversations with players, whether they like it or not, as the message has to be conveyed properly.

“These are conversations I constantly have with players. I’m not hurt about it at all because I don’t expect players to always like all the messages or agree with everything I have to say about them. That’s not how it works. When you have difficult conversations with people – sometimes you have to have them with players – you don’t always expect them to agree with you or like you, but that doesn’t mean you brush it under the carpet and don’t have the conversations,” added Dravid.

The former India captain also expressed that it’s natural for players to get upset, but he believes in always having such conversations and being open about their selection in the playing XI.

“I always believe in having those conversations before every playing XI is picked and be open to questions such as why they are not playing. It’s natural for players to get upset and feel hurt,” Dravid added further.

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