 "Sarfaraz Khan’s curious omission: Bizarre reasons emerge for India A exclusion despite weight loss and stellar domestic form")
Sarfaraz Khan’s Test career is at a crossroads after the 28-year-old was not picked on Tuesday in the India A squad for two four-day games against South Africa A. Both India A vs South Africa A will be played at BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru, but Sarfaraz’s absence from the India A squad hints that the Mumbai batter is all but ruled out of the Test series between India and South Africa that will be played from 14 November.
Sarfaraz Khan has not been a part of the Indian Test squad since the England tour earlier this year, despite making an impressive start to his career, scoring 371 runs in six Tests at an average of 37.10. He was part of the five-match Test series in Australia late last year, but did not play a single match before being dropped for the England tour.
No Sarfaraz Khan in India A squad despite terrific domestic form
While announcing the squad for the England tour, BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar had said the panel picked Karun Nair instead as he was in better form in domestic cricket.
“Sometimes, you just have to make good decisions. Sarfaraz, I know he got a 100 in the first Test and then didn’t get runs. Sometimes, it’s decisions the team management takes. At the moment, Karun has scored heaps of runs in domestic (cricket), has played a bit of Test cricket, played a bit of county cricket. With Virat (Kohli) not there, clearly we’re lacking a bit of experience. We felt his experience could help. We can’t pick 50 players now, so naturally when you have to pick 18 players, some players will be missing out,” Agarkar had said.
However, the fact of the matter is that Sarfaraz Khan has been one of the most consistent batters in domestic cricket over the years. He has scored 4759 runs at an average of 65.19 in 56 First-Class matches. He has scored 2467 runs in the last five years in First-Class cricket at an average of 117.47.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsHe also scored 92 against England Lions in Canterbury for India A before the England Test series and scored 102 in an intra-squad game against Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep.
To tackle the question over his fitness, Sarfaraz Khan has reportedly shed around 17 kgs this year, but continues to face exclusion from the Indian Test squad.
Bizarre reasons emerge as Sarfaraz Khan misses out again
A report in the Indian Express says that the selectors had informed Sarfaraz Khan earlier that he would be picked for the home series, but he missed out on the two-match series against West Indies earlier this month due to fitness issues. The Indian squad for the Windies series was picked on 25 September, while Sarfaraz Khan cleared the fitness test at CoE on 27 September.
Now, a BCCI source has told The Times of India that Sarfaraz Khan was not included in the India A squad on Tuesday as the selectors want him to play a few matches of the Ranji Trophy and the selection of senior Indian players, including KL Rahul, created a lack of space for the middle-order batter.
“It’s not correct that he’s not even in the scheme of things for the Indian Test team or the doors have been closed on him. He’s a talented player," a BCCI source told TOI. “The reality is that the selectors want to ensure that Sarfaraz gets to play as many matches in the Ranji Trophy as possible after his return from injury. He would’ve missed the next few rounds of the Ranji Trophy had he been included in this side. There was a thought to include him in the side for the second match, but then all the India players, like KL Rahul are keen to play in that game to gain match practice ahead of the home two-Test series against South Africa.”
This argument doesn’t hold much weight, though, because if selectors truly wanted to pick Srfaraz for the South Africa Test series, then he would have been a part of the India A squad. Getting picked in the India A squad is the clearest indication that a player is part of the larger scheme of things.
According to news agency PTI, Rishabh Pant’s return to the India A squad after his recovery from a toe injury forced Sarfaraz out of the squad as there was no space for him to bat at No 5 slot.
A former BCCI selector, who is privy to developments, told PTI that Sarfaraz should start batting at No 3 for Mumbai to force his entry into the Indian Test team as the management is in search of a new top-order batter.
Karun Nair and Sai Sudharsan have batted at No 3 for India recently, but they have failed to seal the spot permanently.
“Sarfaraz should have a chat with the Mumbai team management and also with their senior-most player, Ajinkya Rahane, and, maybe, try out batting at No. 3 where he might have to play the new ball. If he keeps batting at No. 5 or 6, it won’t help. India have more all-round options for those slots.
“Pant, Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja and Nitish Reddy… if all are fit and available, they will occupy the middle-order, being multi-skilled players. When Pant is injured, it will be Dhruv Jurel batting at No. 5 or 6.”
Whatever might be the reason for his exclusion, the latest episode only highlights that Sarfaraz has now fallen behind Rajat Patidar and Ruturaj Gaikwad in the pecking order and making a return to the Indian Test side would be an increasingly difficult task for him.
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