A section of Indian fans expressed their disappointment with Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid for not including Sarfaraz Khan in the playing XI for the second Test against England.
As expected India handed Rajat Patidar – who was picked in the squad for the first two Tests after Virat Kohli pulled out due to personal reasons – his debut Test cap ahead of the 2nd Test against England Visakhapatnam after KL Rahul was ruled out due to an injury.
Fans, however, had also expected Sarfaraz Khan to make his debut in the belief that India would want to strengthen their batting as Ravindra Jadeja, too, missed the second Test. Instead, India picked leg-spinner Kuldeep Yadav and seamer Mukesh Kumar – with Mohammed Siraj rested – to boost the bowling further.
Mumbai’s Sarfaraz Khan had been added to the squad for the 2nd Test following KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja picking up injuries. The 26-year-old has a stunning record in first-class cricket. In 45 FC matches, Sarfaraz Khan has amassed 3912 runs at an average of 69.85, having notched up 14 centuries and 11 fifties.
Fans lashed out at the Indian team management for sticking with Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer, two batters who have underperformed in the past year in Test cricket, and omitting Sarfaraz again. Since January 2023, Gill has averaged 25 in 9 Test matches and Iyer averages 14 in 7 Tests. Iyer has not reached a half-century in this period, and Gill’s only landmark came on a flat, lifeless Ahmedabad surface last year against Australia in a match that ended in a dull, high-scoring draw.
Fans unhappy with Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid for ignoring Sarfaraz Khan for 2nd Test vs England:
A look at #TeamIndia‘s Playing XI for the 2nd #INDvENG Test 🙌
Follow the match ▶️ https://t.co/X85JZGt0EV@IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/fE4mYc9yfw
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 2, 2024
Teams:
India (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Shreyas Iyer, Srikar Bharat(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mukesh Kumar
England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes(c), Ben Foakes(w), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, James Anderson
Also Read: VIDEO – Ravindra Jadeja Shared A Big Update About His Injury
