Former Indian wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel hailed debutant Sarfaraz Khan, who scored fifties in both innings in the third Test match against England at the Niranjan Shah Cricket Stadium, Rajkot. Khan scored a fine knock of 62 runs in his maiden Test innings but he was sold down the river by Ravindra Jadeja.
Furthermore, Khan scored an unbeaten knock of 68 runs off 72 balls in the second innings. Khan added 172 runs with Yashasvi Jaiswal, who scored a fine knock of 214 runs.
Meanwhile, Khan was able to break into India’s Test squad after consistent performances in the domestic circuit. He has been averaging around 70 and deserved his place in the final XI at the top level.
Furthermore, Khan became the fourth Indian batter to score twin fifties on debut. Khan joined the elite list of Dilawar Hussain, Sunil Gavaskar, and Shreyas Iyer.
“He will not have any problems against spin because of the way he bats. He has an average of 70 (in first-class cricket), which means he has played a lot of spin. So he knows against which bowler he needs to hit fours and where he can get a single after hitting a four,” Parthiv Patel said on Colors Cineplex.
“We saw that every time, both in the first innings and here as well. When Rehan Ahmed tried to bowl in the rough, Sarfaraz said that he has grown up playing here and would hit over midwicket against the spin. When you have scored so many runs, you know how to score runs in every condition,” the former India wicketkeeper-batter added.
On the other hand, former England batter Owais Shah said Khan comes to the crease with the intent of scoring runs. Khan had a strike rate of 93.94 in the first innings and struck at 93.44 in the second essay.
“When he comes to bat, it’s evident that he has come with the thinking of scoring runs. He doesn’t come with the thinking of defending. He looks like a different type of batter to me because of his mindset and body language,” he explained.
Shah added that Khan backed his strengths, which have worked wonders for him in first-class cricket.
“When he is on strike, we are thinking where he would be hitting a four or a six, and if it’s a good ball, he takes a single. He has come prepared from first-class cricket. He played the same game that he has already played in first-class cricket,” Shah stated.
India and England will next take on each other at JSCA International Stadium Complex, Ranchi in the fourth Test match from Friday.
