Sarfaraz Khan: The Run Machine India Keeps Rejecting

How much longer must Sarfaraz Khan, that relentless Mumbai mauler who feasted on 863 Ranji runs last season and etched a defiant 150 into Test lore, grovel before the BCCI’s selection cabal, only to be spat out like yesterday’s chew? Just days ago, on October 22, they unveiled the India A squad for South Africa—two unofficial Tests starting October 30—and there he was, absent again, a glaring void amid middling mediocrities handed lifelines he could only dream of. His cricket achievements speak for themselves.

International Cricket Achievements (2022-2025)

Sarfaraz Khan made his international debut in Test cricket in February 2024 and has since played exclusively in the format for India, featuring in 6 matches up to November 2024. He has not played ODIs or T20Is in this period. His overall Test record stands at 371 runs in 11 innings (1 not out) at an average of 37.10, with a highest score of 150, including 1 century and 3 half-centuries. Key highlights include:

Test Debut (3rd Test vs England, Rajkot, February 15-18, 2024): Scored 62 (66 balls, SR 93.94) in the first innings and an unbeaten 68 (72 balls, SR 94.44) in the second, registering twin fifties on debut—the fourth Indian to achieve this (after Dilawar Hussain, Sunil Gavaskar, and Shreyas Iyer). His second-innings knock formed a 158-run partnership with Yashasvi Jaiswal at a run rate of 6.53 per over, the highest for any Indian pair adding 150+ runs in a Test innings. This helped India declare at 430/4, setting a target of 557 and securing a record 434-run victory—the largest by runs in Indian Test history and second-largest against England.

Home Series vs Bangladesh (September 2024): Played both Tests, contributing steady middle-order support amid India’s 2-0 series win.

Home Series vs New Zealand (October-November 2024): 1st Test (Bengaluru): Scored a career-best 150, anchoring India’s batting in a drawn match.

Awards: Won the BCCI Best International Debut (Men) award for the 2023-24 season at the Naman Awards in February 2025.

He also played for India A in May 2025, scoring 92 against England Lions in Canterbury as part of preparations for the England tour.

Sarfaraz has been a prolific run-scorer in domestic cricket, particularly in the Ranji Trophy for Mumbai, amassing over 1,600 runs across the 2022-23 to 2024-25 seasons at an elite average. His first-class career stats up to October 2025: 55 matches, 4,685 runs at 65.98, with 16 centuries. He occasionally kept wickets in T20s.

Ranji Trophy 2022-23: Scored 556 runs in limited matches at an average of 92.66, outperforming contemporaries like Karun Nair (690 runs at 40.58) and reinforcing his reputation as a middle-order enforcer.

IPL 2023 (Delhi Capitals): Played 4 matches as a middle-order batter and occasional keeper, scoring 62 runs at a strike rate of 141. His aggressive style (including quick cameos) added depth to DC’s lineup, though the team exited early.

Ranji Trophy 2023-24 (Truncated Season): Featured in 3 matches, scoring 200 runs (including an unbeaten 200+ vs Himachal Pradesh—his second successive double-century in the tournament) at an average of around 100. This form directly led to his Test call-up.

Ranji Trophy 2024-25: Emerged as Mumbai’s standout batter with 863 runs (4th-highest in the tournament), playing a pivotal role in their title-winning campaign. His consistency against spin (strike rate of 135 in domestic cricket) was crucial in key victories.

Other Domestic (2025): Lost 17 kg in July 2025 to address fitness concerns after being unsold at the IPL 2025 auction. Scored 138 (114 balls) vs TNCA XI in a practice game and 92 for India A vs England Lions. In the ongoing Ranji 2025-26 (started October 2025), he opened the batting due to injuries but scored a duck vs Jammu & Kashmir—his first competitive match in months.

Sarfaraz’s journey reflects resilience, with his domestic dominance (seven centuries in 18 Ranji innings from 2021 to 2023) finally translating to international success in 2024. However, despite all his achievements, he was dropped for the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia and the 2025 home series vs England. This isn’t oversight; it’s obstinacy bordering on sabotage. Desperate to appease the fitness police who hounded him after his IPL auction snub, Sarfaraz clawed off 17 kilograms in a grueling July overhaul, emerging leaner, hungrier, a testament to sacrifice that would make ascetics weep—yet the panel’s response? Crickets, louder than a dropped catch at Lord’s.Ravichandran Ashwin fumes at this “mystery,” Sunil Gavaskar thunders about injustice, and whispers of surname bias swirl like a poorly spun googly, but the selectors? Stone-faced, script-flipping robots churning out the same tired excuses, dooming a generational talent to domestic drudgery while they chase ghosts of consistency in far lesser mortals. Wake up, you myopic mandarins: Sarfaraz isn’t the problem—your blindered reign is, and it’s bleeding Indian cricket dry of its fire.