Sourav Ganguly, the former president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has expressed his surprise and disappointment over the exclusion of Sarfaraz Khan from the Indian Test squad for the upcoming tour of the West Indies. Sarfaraz, who plays for Uttar Pradesh, has been one of the most consistent and prolific run-scorers in domestic cricket in the last few seasons but has not been given a chance to represent India in the longest format.
Ganguly said that Sarfaraz deserved an opportunity to play for India, based on his performance and potential. He also questioned the selectors' logic behind ignoring another talented batsman, Abhimanyu Easwaran, who captains Bengal and has also amassed runs in domestic cricket. Ganguly praised the inclusion of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who impressed in the IPL 2023, but said that Sarfaraz and Easwaran should not be overlooked.
“I feel for Sarfaraz Khan. At some point he should get an opportunity for the amount of runs that he has scored in past three years," Ganguly told PTI. Ganguly also dismissed the notion that Sarfaraz might struggle against fast bowling, saying that he had no problems facing pace and bounce.
The 50-year-old said that Sarfaraz should be tested at the international level to see how he fares. "If you don't play him against fast bowling, how do you know? If he had problems he would not have scored so many runs. I personally feel he has no problems against fast bowling and he should be given an opportunity," Ganguly said.
The Indian team is slated to play a total of 10 games in the Caribbean, which consist of two Tests, three ODIs and five T20Is. The squads for the Tests and ODIs have been announced by the BCCI on June 23. The tour will kick off with the Test series on July 12 in Antigua followed by the ODIs and the T20Is till August 13.
India’s Test squad:
Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), KS Bharat (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Navdeep Saini.
India’s ODI squad:
Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Surya Kumar Yadav, Sanju Samson (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Shardul Thakur, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohd. Siraj, Umran Malik, Mukesh Kumar.
