Anil Kumble, who presented Sarfaraz Khan with his debut cap, joked that he might have passed on some bad luck to the young batter during the cap presentation ceremony, which resulted in him getting run out in his first innings against England.
Well, all eyes were on Sarfaraz Khan's debut in the ongoing third Test between India and England in Rajkot. Despite being a consistent performer in domestic cricket, Sarfaraz had to wait for a long time for his chance.
But when it finally came, he showed no signs of nerves and hit some impressive boundaries despite coming to bat in a pressure situation against England.
On Day 1 of the third Test, Sarfaraz reached the 50-run mark in just 48 balls, but a mix-up with Ravindra Jadeja led to his run-out after playing a quick knock of 62 runs off 66 runs in Rajkot.
Read Also: IND v ENG 2024: Naushad Khan on how Suryakumar Yadav’s message ensured he saw Sarfaraz's debut Test
The unfortunate incident occurred during an over by James Anderson. Ravindra Jadeja, who was batting on 99, hit the ball to mid-on and called for a single. But realizing the risk, he changed his mind, leaving Sarfaraz stranded too far from the crease.
After getting run out by Mark Wood, Sarfaraz looked disappointed, and Indian team captain Rohit Sharma showed his frustration by throwing his cap in the dressing room.
Anil Kumble said on Jio Cinema: “Yes, Sarfaraz was dominating the partnership but Jadeja, I thought, got into a shell, and that sometimes creates a mindset where you are not clear about the decision-making. Maybe, that was one of the reasons and possibility I passed on my bad luck of my debut run-out to Sarfaraz!”
Notably, Kumble was also run out for 2 on his Test debut way back in 1990 against England in Manchester.
Announcing himself in Test cricket, Sarfaraz smashed his first-ever half-century in just 48 balls. The 26-year-old joined Hardik Pandya by scoring the joint-fastest fifty by an Indian batter on Test debut. Sarfaraz hit nine fours and one maximum as the debutant scored 62 off 66 balls.
“It never looked like it was his first Test innings. We all know about the talent he has and we have seen him dominate spin at the domestic level. But at the Test level, you need a completely different mindset and to have that approach and play that free-flowing innings was brilliant. He was certainly tested by Mark Wood, but coming in and dominating the spinners was outstanding.
And the way he batted – more than a run a ball with the kind of shot selection, he was very assured in his approach. After he took the bowlers on, the next ball was played on the backfoot just to maneuver that single and get off strike. Brilliant batting from Sarfaraz,” Kumble added.
