‘Wasn’t expecting to be selected’ – Sarfaraz Khan on being picked for India A’s tour of South Africa

For Sarfaraz Khan, the India A call-up for the tour of South Africa came as a big surprise. After making a promising entry into the sport back in 2014, the right-handed batter, somewhat, has fallen down the pecking order. Last month, he was also tested positive for COVID-19 due to which he couldn’t take part in the previous edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

However, the 24-year-old has made his way into the India A team for the red-ball matches against South Africa A. The three-match series is set to get underway on Tuesday, November 23 with all the matches to be played at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein. The youngster reckoned that the call-up is a lucky break for him since he hasn’t played a lot of cricket of late.

Sarfaraz Khan waiting patiently for his chance

“I was not expecting to be selected for the South Africa tour. I had been waiting for my selection for a long time but the domestic season was not played due to Covid-19,” Sarfaraz was quoted as saying to cricket.com

“It’s been two years since I made nearly 1000 runs in the Ranji Trophy so I thought I might have to perform well again to get selected for India A. But fortunately, I got selected and I am grateful for that,” he stated.

Sarfaraz also said that representing India A is a bigger accomplishment for him than playing in the cash-rich Indian Premier League. The batter has set his goals clear and said that he isn’t focussing on the IPL at the present point in time.

“Whatever is destined for me will happen. Bigger than the IPL is playing for India ‘A’ and I am really happy about that. We play Ranji Trophy with the aim to play in India’s ‘A’ team. It is a big thing. I am not thinking about the IPL right now,” he added.

Sarfaraz made his IPL debut back in 2015 for the Royal Challengers Bangalore after which he moved to the Punjab Kings. In the previous season, he played two games for KL Rahul’s PBKS and bagged ducks in both of them. In 28 IPL innings, Sarfaraz averages 23.21 with one half-century.