Chris Gayle has voiced his disappointment over the continued absence of Sarfaraz Khan from India’s Test squad, despite the batter’s consistent performances and remarkable fitness transformation. The former West Indies great, speaking on Shubhankar Mishra’s YouTube channel, revealed that Sarfaraz is his favourite among the current Indian players and insisted that the youngster has done enough to warrant a longer run. “I mean, he should be in the Test side. At least in the squad. He scored a century against England at home, and then he wasn’t picked. I saw a post recently about his weight loss, but even when he was heavier, he was scoring runs. That was never an issue,” Gayle said. Sarfaraz has piled up mountains of runs in domestic cricket, including triple centuries in first-class cricket. Yet, after sitting out the series against Australia and missing selection entirely for the recent England tour, he has struggled to find a consistent place.
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“The man has scored triple centuries in first-class cricket. If that’s being held against him, then that’s really unfortunate. India has so much talent, but players like him deserve a fair run,” Gayle added. So far, Sarfaraz has played six Tests for India, scoring 371 runs at an average of 37.1, including a century and three half-centuries. Despite showing promise, he was not part of the squad for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy in England, which ended in a gripping 2-2 draw. For now, Sarfaraz continues to wait patiently, hoping the selectors hand him another chance to prove his worth in the longest format.
