Sarfaraz’s returns on the field with the bat were even more prodigious than his waistline: Sunil Gavaskar

Flamboyant middle order batter Sarfaraz Khan’s fitness was under the scanner for the longest time and for the same reason, the Mumbai batter wasn’t picked for the Indian team for a couple of years. He was scoring tons of runs in the domestic circuit, which made it hard for the selectors to avoid him but yet, Sarfaraz couldn’t break into India’s Test team. Earlier in the year, when multiple Indian batters missed out on the England series, the new selection committee gave him an opportunity and since then, Sarfaraz has been a part of the squad. 

In the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru, the 26-year-old hit 150 runs, which was extremely vital for the team. His knock brought India back into the game but eventually, the Rohit Sharma-led side failed to get the job done. Nevertheless, the captain was impressed with Sarfaraz’s knock and he will most certainly travel with the Indian team for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which will begin on November 22.

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Ahead of that, former cricketer Sunil Gavaskar reminded how Sarfaraz was ignored for years in the name of fitness. He claimed that the selectors were obsessed with slim-waist cricketers and didn’t give a chance to Sarfaraz despite him being in good form.

“Sarfaraz’s returns on the field with the bat were even more prodigious than his waistline. Sadly, Indian cricket has had too many decision-makers with ideas that are hard to fathom,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Sportstar.

“Sarfaraz Khan has been denied a place in the Indian team for some years now, despite scoring runs by the hundreds in domestic cricket. This was largely because those in a position to make decisions believed he didn’t have the slim waist they deemed necessary for international cricket,” he added.

Please discard these yoyo-yoyo tests: Gavaskar

Gavaskar cited the example of Rishabh Pant to explain that the weight of a cricketer doesn’t matter. He explained that despite him not being a slim waist cricketer, Pant is fit enough to keep for long hours, which is the important bit. He also advised the team management to scrap the yoyo tests and check the mental toughness of a cricketer.

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“Rishabh Pant is another player who doesn’t possess the slim waist that these fitness purists seem to want, but what an impact player he is. Let’s not forget that he also keeps wickets all day, which not only requires getting up and down for around six hours of play but also running to the stumps to gather the throws. So, please discard these yoyo-yoyo tests and instead assess how strong a player is mentally,” Gavaskar said.