'If Gavaskar, Tendulkar thought…': Sarfaraz Khan pulls off unique move to grab Agarkar's attention, make India comeback

Despite losing 17 kilos, Sarfaraz Khan did not find a place in India's Test squad for the tour of England. This was after he had travelled to Australia last year for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Since making his Test debut for India last year, Sarfaraz's numbers are fairly decent – 371 runs from six matches at an average of 37.10, including one century. Still, the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee deemed him unworthy to slot him in the 15 for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. The rejection, however, has not fazed Sarfaraz. After scoring a brilliant 92 for India A against India Lions in May, the 27-year-old has decided to pull off something very unorthodox by participating in the Kanga League, something that not many international cricketers from Mumbai have done in the recent past. Sarfaraz Khan wants to prove a point(AFP)

The Kanga League is a tournament played during the Mumbai monsoons, mostly between July and October. The overcast conditions and moisture-heavy pitches make it difficult for the batters to score runs. But not Sarfaraz. Representing the Parkophone Cricketers, Sarfaraz played a fine knock of 61 from 42 balls against Islam Gymkhana. In fact, so determined was Sarfaraz that he reached the ground half an hour early to ensure he was ahead of the competition.

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Kanga League's history has been cherished for decades. The who's who of Mumbai cricket, including Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar, Sandeep Patil, and Dilip Vengsarkar, among many, proudly played the tournament whenever they had time back in the day. Taking inspiration from these legends, Sarfaraz is eager to make a mark and prove a point as he pushes for his comeback into the Indian Test team.

"During my childhood, I heard a lot of stories from my father [coach Naushad Khan] about how Sunil Gavaskar sir once turned up for a Kanga League match despite returning from England the same morning. So, Musheer [younger brother] and I have always taken pride in playing this tournament. While returning from Nagpur last evening [Saturday], we were hoping it wouldn't rain today. It rained a bit this morning, but when I reached Islam Gymkhana, the weather was good. I played my last Kanga League match three years ago. I was going through the league fixture book before this game and saw my name in it for scoring a century in 2018 and it felt nice,” Sarfaraz told Mid-day.

Sarfaraz Khan takes inspiration from Mumbai greats

It's been close to a year now since Sarfaraz last played for India. After scoring 150 against New Zealand in Bengaluru last October, Sarfaraz played just two more Tests before he was dropped from the Playing XI. His road back to the Test team won't be easy, given the long queue of youngsters knocking on the door, but with India's next two Test assignments being at home against West Indies and South Africa, there is scope after all. Emphasising the importance of the tournament, Sarfaraz insists more Mumbai players should turn up for the Kanga League.

"All Mumbai players should play [Kanga League]. Some players feel that if they fail here, it’ll be bad for their future. But if Gavaskar sir and Sachin Tendulkar sir thought the same way, they might not have gone on to become legends. If big players play in this tournament, it will be an inspiration for the city’s youngsters. Kanga League is such a tournament that if you succeed here, you can score runs anywhere in the world," he pointed out.

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