Sarfaraz Khan’s non-selection for the upcoming Test series against West Indies has sparked fresh debates. On Friday, the BCCI announced a 16-man squad for the Caribbean Tests, starting July 12 in Jamaica. The selectors handed maiden calls to the likes of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal while senior figures, like Cheteshwar Pujara, Umesh Yadav and Mohammad Shami, missed out.
As soon as the squad was out, several experts questioned the absence of Sarfaraz who has been consistently scoring runs in the domestic circuit. Amid the uproar, news agency PTI reported that the selectors are keeping an eye on the 25-year-old. However, his fitness and indiscipline conduct are some of the reasons which are holding the youngster back from getting his debut Test cap.
His gesture of pointing fingers towards the dressing room after scoring a phenomenal hundred against Delhi earlier this year didn’t go down well. The action was perceived as a dig at one of the selectors watching the match, the report stated.
Meanwhile, the people associated with Mumbai cricket has come in support of Sarfaraz.
“Sarfaraz’s celebration during a Ranji match in Delhi was meant for his teammates and coach Amol Mujumdar, who had doffed his hat. The selector present was Salil Ankola and not Chetan Sharma. Sarfaraz took the team out of a pressure situation and the celebration was one of relief,” a source close to the cricketer told PTI on Monday.
“Is it even wrong to be exalted in your celebration and that too when you are pointing towards your own dressing room,” the source added.
PTI, in its older report, mentioned an incident where apparently MP coach Chandrakant Pandit was not happy with his attitude. But the source quoted by the news agency said that Pandit always has been affectionate towards him.
“Chandu sir treats him like a son. He has always had good things to say about him and knows him since he was 14 years old. He would never be angry with Sarfaraz,” the source was quoted as saying.
People close to Sarfaraz do want to know why he has been ignored in the Indian team despite scoring heavily.
The current Indian team has fitness criteria of 16.5 and he has cleared it as far as cricketing fitness goes, he has at times batted for two days and fielded for another two days.
(With PTI Inputs)
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