Saha says won't reveal name of journalist who sent threatening messages

India wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha has said that he will not reveal the name of the purported journalist from whom he received threatening messages, even if asked by the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI).

Saha, who has been in the news for making public his conversations with BCCI chief Sourav Ganguly, India head coach Rahul Dravid, and tweeting a screenshot of a distressing conversation with whom he described as a "so-called respected journalist".

"After all of my contributions to Indian cricket..this is what I face from a so-called “Respected” journalist! This is where the journalism has gone," he had tweeted on Saturday – the same day he was excluded from India's squad for the Sri Lanka Test series.

“I haven’t received any communication from the BCCI yet. If they ask me to reveal the name (of the journalist), I would tell them it was never my intention to harm somebody’s career, to pull a person down. That’s why I didn’t reveal the name in my tweet," he told The Indian Express.

"I posted those tweets because I didn’t want the players to face such things. I wanted to convey the message that what has been done was wrong and no one else should do it again,” the 37-year-old added.

Earlier, Saha had made public a conversation with Ganguly regarding his selection.

"After scoring 61 against New Zealand at Kanpur, Dadi (Ganguly) congratulated me over WhatsApp and mentioned, 'As long as I'm here (helming the BCCI), you would be in the team'. Such a message from the BCCI president really boosted my confidence. What I'm struggling to understand is that how things have changed so fast," Saha was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.

He later mentioned the conversation he had with India head coach Rahul Dravid regarding his non-selection to ESPNCricinfo.

"Don't be shocked if you are not selected for the Sri Lanka Tests. In the meantime, if you want to take some other decision, you can do that, he quoted Dravid as telling him in an interview with the cricket publication.

While Dravid said he was not hurt about the conversation being made public, Snehashish Ganguly, Secretary of Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) was miffed over Saha making the WhatsApp chat with 'Dada' public.

"This is my personal opinion, but what was communicated to him (Saha) was private. He probably shouldn't have gone public with that. Also, he could have played the Ranji Trophy. He cited personal reasons for pulling out and we have to respect that. The door is always open for him, whenever he wants to join the squad," Snehashish Ganguly was quoted as saying by the publication.

The Indian Cricketers Association earlier in the day condemned the threatening message sent to Saha. The BCCI on Monday said it will probe the matter. The 37-year-old has played 40 Tests since making his debut in 2010.

(with agency inputs)

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