'His domestic numbers are UNREAL' - Netizens puzzled as Sarfaraz Khan misses out on WTC final selection

Sarfaraz aggregated 556 runs and laced it with three tons and one half-century for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy 2022/23 season.

Published - 25 Apr 2023, 12:58 IST | Updated - 25 Apr 2023, 12:44 IST

14 Min Read

The BCCI announced a 15-member squad for the forthcoming World Test Championship (WTC) Final on Tuesday, April 25. The squad announcement has witnessed the recall of veteran batter Ajinkya Rahane who last played a Test for India back in January 2022.

One of the players who have failed to make the cut is Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan, despite his impressive run in the red-ball domestic circuit, which has garnered much attention on social media. Many fans on social media are flabbergasted by the omission of Delhi Capitals batter Sarfaraz Khan from the upcoming red-ball ICC event.

For the unversed, the 25-year-old batter took the domestic circuit by storm with his lethal batting exploits lately. In six matches, Sarfaraz aggregated 556 runs at an impressive average of 92.66 and laced it with three tons and one half-century for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy 2022/23 season.

In his final outing against Delhi in January, the batter slammed a majestic 125 despite ending in a losing cause. Despite his purple patch, he was also not selected in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy played in February-March.

The batter has been knocking on the doors of the Test side for a while with his eye-catching performances in the domestic set-up. However, it seems that he will have to wait for a bit longer to make his way into the set-up.

Moreover, it was expected that he would be the frontrunner to join the squad as the likes of Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer are confined to the sidelines owing to injuries. While Pant sustained multiple injuries due to a freak car accident in December 2022, Iyer has endured a bulged disc in his lower back.

Sarfaraz is currently plying his trade for the Delhi Capitals in the ongoing IPL 2023. However, the 25-year-old has only featured in three of the seven outings thus far for the franchise, and churned out scores of 4, 30, and 10 runs, respectively. Team India will square off against Australia in the ICC World Test Championship Final starting June 7 at The Oval in London.

Here is how Twitter reacted to Sarfaraz Khan's absence from India's WTC Final squad:

Jayesh@jayeshofficial9

I feel Sarfaraz Khan should have been in the test team. Averaging 79 in the FC is absolutely brilliant and he is known for playing daddy hundred. #BCCI #indiancricket #sarfarazkhan

11:53 AM · Apr 25, 2023

BCCI

@BCCI

🚨 NEWS 🚨 #TeamIndia squad for ICC World Test Championship 2023 Final announced. Details 🔽 #WTC23 bcci.tv/articles/2023/… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Viraj Waralkar@viraj_2401

@BCCI still NO Sarfaraz Khan ?

11:54 AM · Apr 25, 2023

BCCI

@BCCI

🚨 NEWS 🚨 #TeamIndia squad for ICC World Test Championship 2023 Final announced. Details 🔽 #WTC23 bcci.tv/articles/2023/… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Ak@akhilksm122

@BCCI Sarfaraz khan should have been there

11:31 AM · Apr 25, 2023

Cricket baba@Cricketbaba5

Ishant Sharma ko bhi le lete na fir, I am sure England mai wo aaj bhi bhot acchi bowling kar lega

H A M Z A 🇵🇰@HamzaKhan259

@Cricketbaba5 Why u not try Sarfaraz Khan?? His numbers are just unreal.

11:31 AM · Apr 25, 2023

MuZammil Khan@singmuzammil

@BCCI what big records have KS Bharat in comparison with #SarfarazKhan He can also do keeping and we will have a good scorer. #Sarfaraz could have selected for WTC Final. @ImRo45 @imVkohli @RickyPonting @davidwarner31

11:27 AM · Apr 25, 2023

Sparsh Telang@_cricketsparsh

My XI: Rohit, KLR (or Gill), Pujara, Kohli, Rahane, Jadeja, KSB, Ashwin*, Unadkat, Shami, Siraj Had Rahane not been included, I would've had Shubman Gill at No. 5. *I however expect them to play Thakur over Ashwin.

Papli@paplitweets

@_cricketsparsh Still no sarfaraz khan ...sigh ..very unfair

11:22 AM · Apr 25, 2023

Sameer Allana@HitmanCricket

Ajinkya Rahane gets a spot in Tests because of IPL form. Sarfaraz Khan misses out on it because of IPL form. Wouldn't be surprised if Sarfaraz stops playing Ranji & starts playing full fledged IPL to make a statement for Indian team. I'm sure then he will surely get selected.

11:27 AM · Apr 25, 2023

divy@!@dvsolanki2002

What does a Sarfaraz Khan have to do more.

12:17 PM · Apr 25, 2023

HARSHal Wagh@harshwordswagh

@iMrProfessor Domestic dekho.. It's not about IPL form

Mr.Professor 🜃@iMrProfessor

@harshwordswagh According to domestic there is not batter batsman than Sarfaraz Khan.

12:26 PM · Apr 25, 2023

Bundesliga Fan Account

@riz_zaffy

Rahane being selected over Sarfaraz for Tests just cos he’s playing well in IPL shows that Ranji trophy and every other domestic competition has zero value in the eyes of selectors. If you want to play for Team India - the only platform that matters is IPL.

11:30 AM · Apr 25, 2023