Ind vs Eng: How debutant Sarfaraz almost stole centurions' thunder

It’s no mean task for a Test debutant to grab eyeballs on a day which saw two centuries for India, but Sarfaraz Khan did precisely that in Rajkot on Thursday. The 26-year-old from Mumbai, easily the most prolific scorer in domestic cricket over the last few years, showed that all the grinding in empty stadia and patiently awaiting a call-up has not gone to waste.

If a dour 204-run partnership between captain Rohit Sharma (131) and Ravindra Jadeja (batting 110) saw the hosts recover from a precarious 33 for three on the first day of the third Test against England, Sarfaraz became the talking point in the last session as he scored the joint fastest half-century by a debutant (off 48 balls).

There was a refreshing candour about his batting as the bulky young man reached 50 in no time, making the England spinners look ordinary, and not shying away from lofted shots.

A pity that he was run out for 62 off 66 balls courtesy a poor call from Jadeja, the allrounder himself being on the edge at 99. If he was somewhat fortunate that when he came into bat at the fall of Sharma’s wicket, the pressure was off and the spinners were on, Sarfaraz showed no nerves at all, playing them late and with wristy hands, rotating the strike like a veteran.

Earlier, when Sarfaraz received his Test cap from legendary leg spinner Anil Kumble along with rookie debutant Dhruv Jurel, his father-cum-coach Naushad was visibly teary-eyed in the background. This poignant moment was captured and quickly went viral across social media platforms, touching the hearts of fans and spectators alike.

Invited to the commentary box as a guest, Naushad delivered a poetic reply when asked by TV pundit Aakash Chopra to express his feelings: ‘’It takes time for the night to pass; the sun is not going to rise according to my wish.’’ 

As the cricket fraternity cherished his arrival, one of Sarfaraz's earliest benefactors recalled how Sarfaraz and his younger brother Musheer toiled hard under Naushad Khan. Shyam Bhatia, a Dubai-based businessman and ardent promoter of the game who distributes cricket kits to underprivileged children around the world, said: ‘’I first saw them on a visit to Mumbai’s Cricket Club of India at a programme for my foundation Cricket for Care. Sarfaraz was 13 and Musheer seven (junior being one of the top scorers in the last Under-19 World Cup in South Africa where India was runner-up).’’

Speaking to National Herald, the septuagenarian Bhatia said: ‘’I feel privileged to have played a small part in their journey as I had sponsored an exposure trip for them to England for coaching under Gopal Jasapara of G-Force Cricket Academy. Their father worked very hard on grooming the two boys and made a lot of sacrifices to make them cricketers. I feel Sarfaraz should have played for India two years ago. Give Musheer two more years and he should also play senior India.’’

Once hailed as the latest batting prodigy from the Mumbai assembly line, Sarfaraz broke through in two back-to-back Under-19 World Cups in 2014 and 2016, aggregating 566 runs at a staggering average of 70.75, a tally bettered only by Eoin Morgan (606 runs) and Babar Azam (585 runs). He made his first-class debut exactly a decade ago as a 16-year-old, but soon became an outcast in the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA), which banned him on charges of being an age-cheat.

He continued to polarise opinions as he was once dismissed from an MCA indoor academy camp on disciplinary grounds, and had his match fees withheld for gesticulating against regional selectors after an U-19 game. Almost an outcast, he migrated to Uttar Pradesh for a few seasons, and it seemed he had lost his way a bit.

He moved back to Mumbai for the 2019-20 season, and it almost ushered in a Sarfaraz 2.0 for his ‘home’ side. Sarfraz rustled up 928 runs in the 2019-20 season, followed by 982 in 2022, becoming only the third Indian batter after Wasim Jaffer and Ajay Sharma to hit 900-plus runs in two seasons.