Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan not finding a spot in India’s squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against West Indies has become the talk of the town.
On Friday (June 23), the BCCI’s selection panel announced the 16-member squad and Sarfaraz failed to make the cut despite being so prolific in domestic cricket over the last three seasons.
The right-hander amassed more than 900 runs in the Ranji Trophy 2019-20 and 2021-22 seasons. He continued his brilliance in the 2022-23 edition of Ranji Trophy as well, scoring 556 runs from six matches at an average of 92.66 with three centuries.
As a result, the selection committee’s decision to overlook Sarfaraz is drawing flak from all quarters. Former India opener Aakash Chopra too criticized the selectors for lack of clarity over the batter's continual snubs.
“What should Sarfaraz do? If you look at his numbers in the past 3 years, he's head and shoulders above the rest. He's scored everywhere. Even then, if he's not selected... what message does it send?” Chopra said on his official YouTube channel.
"This is a question worth asking. If there's some other reason, something which you and I don't know, make it public. Just say it that you didn't like that particular thing about Sarfaraz, and that's why you're not considering him. But we don't know if there's something like that. I don't know if someone told Sarfaraz about that.
“If you don't value first-class runs, it leaves a sour taste in the mouth,” he further added.
Meanwhile, batting legend Sunil Gavaskar also expressed his displeasure over the Test squad picked for the West Indies tour.
Citing the example of Sarfaraz Khan, Gavaskar said the selection has demeaned Ranji Trophy and the players who perform in that First-Class tournament.
“Sarfaraz Khan has been scoring at an average of 100 in all past three seasons. What does he have to do to be picked in the squad? He might not be in the XI, but you pick him in the team," Gavaskar told India Today.
"Tell him that his performances are being recognised. Otherwise, stop playing Ranji Trophy. Say, it’s of no use, you just play IPL and think you are good enough for the red ball game as well,” he further said.
India’s Test squad for West Indies tour: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), KS Bharat (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Akshar Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Navdeep Saini.
