The Board of Control for Cricket in India has finally announced the Indian Test squad for the upcoming multi-format series against the West Indies. As predicted earlier, in-form youngsters Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad earned the call-up for the first time but one surprising name missing from the 16-man squad was Sarfaraz Khan.
As expected, the management made major changes to its red-ball squad Cheteshwar Pujara And Umesh Yadav The ICC World Test Championship Final is being pulled out after a poor performance in 2023. Ajinkya Rahane Retained the role of vice-captain after a commendable innings against Australia at The Oval as an experienced fast bowler Mohammed Shami Rest has been given.
The 25-year-old middle-order batsman Sarfaraz has been out of contention for the past three years despite scoring a ton of runs in domestic cricket. The Mumbai batsman has scored 3505 runs in 27 first-class matches at an average of 79.65 and 13 hundreds, but still has not found a place in the Indian national team.
India’s defeat in the WTC final is expected to open doors for Sarfaraz to tour the West Indies. But the player’s performance in the recently concluded Indian Premier League 2023 has played a vital role in his prospects. On the other hand, players like Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal are finding success on the back of their stellar performances. IPL 2023.
Sarfaraz’s absence has enraged Indian cricket fans, who have expressed their disappointment on social media and also criticized the BCCI for selecting the Test team based on IPL performances. Many accused the management of ignoring Sarfaraz and are demanding an explanation from him.
Twitter reaction to Sarfaraz Khan’s absence from West Indies vs India Test squad:
Indian Test squad for West Indies, Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman GillRuturaj Gaikwad, Virat KohliYashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (VC), KS Bharat (Wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (Wicketkeeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra JadejaShardul Thakur, Akshar Patel, Mohammad Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev UnadkatNavdeep Saini