CRICKET
IND vs ENG – Irfan Pathan opines on why Sarfaraz Khan may not debut during 2nd Test vs England
Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has congratulated Sarfaraz Khan on getting his maiden India call-up. The 26-year-old was drafted into the team after KL Rahul got injured in Hyderabad.
According to Irfan Pathan, Sarfaraz Khan might not make his debut in Visakhapatnam. Rajat Patidar could make his long-awaited Test Debut during the second Test. The 30-year-old batter was called up as Virat Kohli pulled out of the first two Tests due to personal reasons.
Meanwhile, James Anderson is back in the England side for the game starting on Friday. The veteran pacer has replaced Mark Wood while Shoaib Bashir is set to play his 1st Test. Jack Leach is missing the game after injuring himself during the first Test.
Irfan Pathan feels Sarfaraz Khan might have to wait for his Test debut
India’s former all-rounder Irfan Pathan has given Rajat Patidar the higher possibility to make his Test debut. During a recent event, the 39-year-old also spoke highly of Sarfaraz Khan to make it to the Test side.
“First of all, congratulations to Sarfaraz Khan for getting into the team after a brilliant performance in domestic cricket. This is a small victory for each and every player who is playing domestic cricket and scoring runs. I was really happy as he was selected. However, it would be difficult for him to get into the playing XI as there are players like Rajat Patidar who have been waiting for a long time,” Irfan Pathan further added.
Vikram Rathour who happens to be the Indian batting coach was also asked to choose between Rajat Patidar and Sarfaraz. While speaking during the pre-game press conference, Rathour said, “It will be a tough choice. They are superb players. We have seen how well they have done in domestic cricket in the last few years. So on these kinds of wickets, they can really add a lot of value to the team. If we have to pick one then it’s of course going to be tough but that’s a decision which Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma will have to make in a day or so.”