Sarfaraz Khan Breaks Silence on India Test Snub For West Indies Tour
Sarfaraz Khan reacts to India Test snub | Source: Twitter
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the ODI and Test squad for the upcoming West Indies tour on Friday, June 23.
While promising youngsters like Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Mukesh Kumar received well-deserved maiden Test call-ups due to their stellar performances, one notable absentee from the Test squad was star Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan.
Despite consistently amassing runs in Ranji Trophy, Sarfaraz continues to be overlooked by the Indian selectors, leaving fans and experts perplexed.
A day after being snubbed for the third consecutive time in 2023, Sarfaraz Khan sent a big message to the BCCI selectors by sharing an Instagram story on his official Instagram handle.
In the 2019/20 Ranji Trophy season, Sarfaraz amassed 928 runs at a Bradmanesque average of 154. Building on his momentum, he continued to dominate in the following season, accumulating 982 runs at an average of 122.75. In the 2022/23 season, Sarfaraz racked up 556 runs, including three centuries.
Overall, he has accumulated a staggering 3505 runs in 35 first-class appearances, at an average of 79.65. However, despite doing all this, Sarfaraz has failed to make the final squad of the Indian Test team.
Taking to instagram on Friday, Sarfaraz shared a video of his highlights from the last Ranji Trophy season in a wake up message to the selectors.
Sarfaraz Khan instagram story | PC: Hindustan Times
The selectors' repeated snubbing of Sarfaraz Khan has drawn sharp criticism from several cricket experts and pundits, who have been quick to express their disappointment.
Among those who have voiced their frustration is former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, who openly lashed out at the selectors for overlooking Sarfaraz's inclusion in the Test squad yet again.
Here’s what Gavaskar said:
"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.”
During the last tour of Bangladesh, when Sarfaraz Khan was not picked for the Test team, he later went on to reveal that he had a conversation with one of the selectors who had given him hope of a potential selection in the Test team down the line. However, that turned out to be unfounded as he was once again left out.
 "Shivani Shukla")
