Sarfaraz Khan has been named as the replacement for Sai Sudharsan, who has been ruled out of the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka. Ahead of the first Test match on August 15 at Galle, former India National Cricket Team batter Mohammad Kaif has backed the Mumbai-based batter to start the game ahead of Dhruv Jurel.
Sarfaraz Khan has already joined the squad ahead of the first game and immediately started practice at the Sinhalese Sports Club (NCC) grounds on Monday. He did not feature in the warm-up game against Sri Lanka Cricket XI. However, with him being under training as he was named in the West Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy, it will not be difficult for the batter.
Mohammad Kaif, while speaking on his YouTube channel, sparked the debate over Sarfaraz Khan’s exclusion from the squad post the New Zealand series. The former batter stated that he scored runs in the series and was in form and then suddenly was dropped, questioning the selectors’ decision.
"There was a reason he was not allowed to play. Performance was not the reason. There was no reason. That his runs were not getting made, that the bat was not working. He made runs against New Zealand. He came across the field. He was playing well. He was in form. When he scored against England, he had a good start," Kaif said.
Why should Sarfaraz Khan play in Sri Lanka?
Kaif also feels that Sarfaraz's ability to play spin well and having a good domestic record against spin is the reason to bring him back into the squad. He hopes the batter performs well if he gets a chance in the playing XI.
"Whatever happened in between, he was removed. But now, whoever said that he should come back, I feel that he is thinking for India. India is thinking for cricket. We have to win. We will need good players. We will need good players. We will need good players who play well,"
Kaif further said. He added: "So, first of all, whoever has named him on the table, I congratulate him a lot. And I hope that Sarfaraz Khan will go there and play well."
"Will have to wait"- Mohammad Kaif explains why Sarfaraz Khan is not a first choice
The former India batter believes that if the Men in Blue go on with their philosophy of playing the players they have been in the squad for a long time and backing them even when they have failed to score consistently, then Sarfaraz has to wait for his chance in this tour as Dhruv Jurel will be preferred over him.
"If they follow the trend of backing the players who have already been playing for the team, then they might say, ‘Jurel has been with us already. He hasn’t scored consistently, but we will back him because he has already been part of the team.’ If that is the approach, then Sarfaraz will have to wait," Kaif said.
"But if you ask me what the best XI is, Sarfaraz’s name comes into my best XI because of his ability to play spin at No. 5 or No. 6. His record against spin is excellent."
“He also has a wide range of shots. When you get to the fourth or fifth day, batting becomes more difficult, and that is where a player like Sarfaraz Khan can be very useful,” he said.
"He knows how to use sweeps and reverse sweeps effectively. He can hit over extra cover, he is good off the back foot and he attacks spin."
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