Mumbai’s prolific batter Sarfaraz Khan was a glaring absentee when the BCCI selectors unveiled the India A squad for a couple of four-day matches against South Africa A last week.

Many have questioned the logic behind leaving out Sarfaraz, who recently underwent a physical transformation and also scored runs during the India A tour of England.

Sarfaraz, who has 4,759 first-class runs to his name at an average of 65.19 in 56 matches, has represented India in six Tests so far, scoring 371 runs with the help of one hundred and three half-centuries. His last Test appearance was against New Zealand in November 2024.

While Sarfaraz was a part of India's tour of Australia late last year, he has been sidelined from the Test squad since then. Now, the India A snub has sparked widespread debate over his international future.

The treatment meted out to Sarfaraz Khan has also left Congress MP Shashi Tharoor disappointed. Tharoor launched a scathing attack on selectors, highlighting Mumbai batter’s stellar run in first-class and international cricket.

“This is frankly an outrage. @SarfarazA_54 averages 65-plus in first-class cricket, scored a 50 on his Test debut and a 150 in a Test we lost, made 92 in his only tour match in England (and a century in the practice match against the full Indian Test team) -- and still finds himself excluded from the selectors' frame of reference,” wrote Tharoor on his X account.

Furthermore, Tharoor lauded Ajinkya Rahane, Prithvi Shaw and Karun Nair’s prolific run in domestic cricket, emphasizing the importance of their runs when compared with IPL performances.

“I am also very glad to see @ajinkyarahane88, @PrithviShaw and @karun126 making runs in the #RanjiTrophy. Our selectors are too quick to discard proven talent in order to take a punt on "potential". These are players who have proven themselves over and over again. Runs in domestic cricket must be valued by the selectors, not just the #IPL; otherwise why should anyone bother to play the Ranji?,” he added.

Earlier, a report published in PTI claimed that Sarfaraz Khan's absence was down to Rishabh Pant's return to the red-ball setup. With Pant being given the No. 5 spot in the India A team, there was no space for Sarfaraz.

In fact, Sarfaraz has reportedly been asked to get himself promoted to the No. 3 spot for the Mumbai team in Ranji Trophy if he is to reclaim his place in the national side.

At present, the only slot vacant in the senior Indian team is No. 3, where Sai Sudharsan hasn't yet done enough to secure his place.