Sarfaraz Khan, has been a name that has been a topic of discussion and debate over the last few days. The talented right handed batter from Mumbai has been snubbed despite his tall run scoring. Sarfaraz, who turns 26 year old this October has been one of the most consistent scorers in the Ranji format. The selectors though decided to ignore his name for the two match Test series in West Indies starting on July 12.
The story as it happened –
Former Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar was aghast after he saw Sarfaraz Khan not being picked for the West Indies. The 73 year old blasted the Indian selectors for ignoring the young man despite his heavy run scoring over the last 36 months. Many former cricketers too joined the fray and showed their dismay.
What the sources said –
The Indian selectors have had their reasons for not picking Sarfaraz Khan. As per sources, the reasons primarily came down to two reasons. One of the reason was the perceived apparent “Fitness” of Sarfaraz Khan. The 2nd being his discipline and attitude which needed to be “disciplined”.
Mumbai Cricket Association springs to the defense of Sarfaraz Khan –
Indian domestic cricket powerhouse, Mumbai Cricket have sprung to the defense of their ward. As per sources the MCA aren’t too pleased with the way Sarfaraz Khan has been painted. The MCA have come out and rebutted the observations made on the 25 year by the sources of the Indian selection committee.
MCA thrashes the disciplinary issues –
One of the reasons stated by the Indian selectors is the discipline issues. It was stated that Sarfaraz, had pointed towards Chetan Sharma who was the chief of selectors after scoring a ton.
One source while speaking on PTI clarified this and said “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. Is it even wrong to be exalted in your celebration and that too when you are pointing towards your dressing room,”
Officials thrash reports of issues with Chandrakant Pandit –
Another reason doing the round was that Sarfaraz Khan had issues with Chandrakant Pandit. The Madhya Pradesh and KKR coach apparently was miffed with the 25 year old. One source while addressing this said to the media “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,”