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Cricket

'It’s absurd'- Twitter shocked with Sarfaraz Khan's exclusion from Test squad for Bangladesh series; Chetan Sharma backs the youngster

Twitter is upset with Sarfaraz Khan being excluded from India's Test squad for the series against Bangladesh.

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Sam Abraham
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Sarfaraz Khan

Sarfaraz Khan (Source: Twitter)

The Indian T20I and ODI squads for the series against New Zealand, as well as the ODI and Test squads for the series against Bangladesh, were announced yesterday. While many young faces will be seen wearing the Indian jersey in this series in the absence of senior players, others will miss out on the opportunity. One of the notable exclusions from the Test squad is Sarfaraz Khan.

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The young batter has been performing admirably in domestic cricket recently. His performances in the recent Ranji Trophy and Irani Cup, India's premier first-class tournaments, have everyone talking about him.

While announcing the teams for their upcoming assignments against New Zealand and Bangladesh on Monday, Indian Cricket Board Chairman of the Selection Committee Chetan Sharma backed Sarfaraz Khan's chances of playing for the Indian cricket team.

"He is a serious contender and he will definitely get a chance very soon. Sarfaraz Khan is being followed and we have given him opportunities in India A. I have spoken to him and he's not that far away. Sometimes people need to do more to replace current players and he was discussed for a brief period," Chetan Sharma said in the virtual press conference.

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However, social media users were outraged that Sarfaraz's inclusion in the squad was being delayed. It is worth noting that the 25-year-old has recently emerged as a prolific scorer in domestic cricket. He has scored 2928 runs in 29 first-class matches at an average of 81.33, with 10 hundred and eight fifties to his name.

Sarfaraz topped the Ranji Trophy run-scoring list during the 2021-22 season, scoring 982 runs at an average of 122.75 in six games. For Mumbai, he scored four centuries and two fifties. He assisted his state team in reaching the Ranji Trophy final, where they were defeated by Madhya Pradesh.

Sarfaraz also scored a century (127 runs) for West Zone while competing in the Duleep Trophy 2022-23. Subsequently, he smashed a 138-run knock for the Rest of India in the Irani Cup 2022-23. In September, he also scored 63 runs for India A in an unofficial Test series against New Zealand A.

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Here's how Twitter reacted to Sarfaraz Khan's exclusion

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