Sarfaraz Khan Earns India Recall For IND Vs SL Tests, Days After Cryptic Instagram Story On Comeback

Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan has replaced injured Sai Sudharsan in India’s squad for the two-Test series against Sri Lanka. Sudharsan has been ruled out of the series due to a stress reaction in his right toe. The BCCI said he has made good progress but is still not fit to play.

His call up comes after he had shared a picture from a movie with the caption, “I may not fit in, but I’ll fight with everything I’ve got.” The post quickly attracted attention from cricket fans. Although the batter did not explicitly mention the selectors or name chief selector Ajit Agarkar, the timing of the post led many fans to interpret it as a possible expression of his frustration over another omission.

Sarfaraz will join the Indian team in Colombo before the squad travels to Galle for the first Test. The opening Test will begin on August 15. Sarfaraz has scored 371 runs in six Tests at an average of 37.1, with a best score of 150.

Sarfaraz was part of India’s squad for the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia but did not play a match. He was also part of India A during the England tour but was not selected for the main Test squad. He is known for his ability to play both fast bowlers and spinners.

The second and final Test will be played at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo from August 23 to 27. India are currently fifth in the World Test Championship points table, while Sri Lanka are sixth. India will look for a strong series to improve their chances of reaching the WTC final.

Updated India squad: Shubman Gill (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Devdutt Padikkal, Saransh Jain, Auqib Nabi and Sarfaraz Khan.