Sarfaraz Khan’s Ranji Trophy batting extravaganza tenders national selection inevitable

Around 12 years ago, a Mumbai kid named Sarfaraz Khan burst into the limelight after breaking a Harris Shield record held by the great Sachin Tendulkar for decades. 

As years went by, the batting prodigy secured several IPL contracts and enjoyed fruitful batting patches across two Under-19 World Cups for India.

Fast forward to 2022, Khan has proven himself to be a stalwart of Mumbai's batting order with dream runs in back-to-back Ranji seasons. However, a national call-up eludes him to this day.

A cricketer born and moulded in a T20 era of batting, he has now cemented his name among the legends of Mumbai's decorated Ranji Trophy history with a series of imperial first-class knocks.

Sarfaraz Khan bangs selectors' doors with dream Ranji Trophy season

In the quest for a 42nd Ranji Trophy title, Mumbai began the 2022 season like a team on a mission. 

Khan, one of the architects of their current batting line-up, has plundered four tons across seven matches this year, including 134 runs of the highest order in the final.

The 24-year-old began Mumbai's 2022 campaign by slaughtering Saurashtra bowlers with a ruthless 275. Then, in the subsequent two group games, he plundered scores of 63, 48 and 165, all at a breakneck pace as his side topped the Elite Group D points table.

Khan's batting conquest was far from over as his 153 sank Uttarakhand's happy-go-merry run in a lop-sided quarter-final contest. The match, however, will be remembered for his teammate Suved Parkar's 252 and his side's record winning margin of 725 runs.

The standards this sparkling young talent raised meant that his handy knock of 40 in the semi-final turned out to be his lowest score of the season. Notably, he made up for his rare "failure" by battering Uttar Pradesh in the second innings of the same game. His 59* on the final day was comprised of three brutal sixes in a herculean stand with another seasonal hero, all-rounder Shams Mulani.  

The Prithvi Shaw-led side eventually set a date with the high-flying Madhya Pradesh side in the final. On the grandest stage of India's most prestigious domestic tournament, Khan flayed his opponents with another superlative ton as his side showed the first signs of distress this year.

Walking into bat at 147-3 on Day 1, the scoring machine stayed on till the end and accounted for 134 off the remaining 227 runs scored by his side.

The Mumbai-born cricketer became the last man to be dismissed just as he attempted to score some quick runs in the finishing stages.

Khan's 134 in the first batting recital of the title clash extended his seasonal run tally to 937 runs spread across eight innings. Maintaining a Bradmanesque-average of 133.85, the youngster continues to knock on India's selectors' doors.

The star batter clubbed 928 runs from 6 matches at an average of over 154 in the 2019-20 edition of the competition. With a first-class average of 82.83 at the moment, seven of Khan's eight career hundreds are spread across the last two Ranji events.

Boasting a pedigree of batting long hours under boiling Mumbai heat, a call-up into the Indian Test side seems closer than ever for this youngster.