Sarfaraz Khan is one of a kind. He is unconventional and happily so. He is not the usual elite cricketer like Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma, and happily so. And yet, he is effective and happily so. Can he be as effective in Australia? Can those magic hands adjust to the faster wickets down under? The truth is we don’t know. What we do know is that he loves to defy odds and make a difference. Loves to embrace the occasion and put on a show. Most importantly, he isn’t overawed by failure and continues to back himself amidst adversity.
Sarfaraz was out for a duck thanks to a Devon Conway stunner in the first innings. He entered with India under huge pressure at 95-2 in the second. Most would have reined themselves in, and tried to make a mark slowly. Not so Sarfraz. He backed himself and counterattacked. And in no time, the deficit was getting wiped out. New Zealand were seeing the lead slip away and had no answers to contain Sarfaraz. That’s the best part about him. Two hours of Sarfaraz means India would have added 150 on the board. He has understood his limitations and evolved a game which backs his strengths. That’s his USP. His self-realisation and ability to work out his comfort zone. He isn’t a Kohli. Or a Rohit. Or even a KL Rahul. And yet, he is effective and been so in his short career.
Things haven’t come easy for Sarfaraz. They still don’t. He still had to sit out after scoring a double-hundred in the Irani Cup. Even in this match, he wouldn’t have played had Shubman Gill been fit. It’s hard to sit out when you are scoring big, and yet Sarfaraz did not let it get to him. He bided his time, and the moment he got an opportunity, he made it count. More so after failing in the first innings, when he knew that another failure and the knives would be out for him. What his knock did was push New Zealand back. Their calculations went for a toss, and all of a sudden, Tom Latham knew that India could even win from here. He was forced to get defensive and change track. That’s what Sarfaraz and Rishabh Pant did. They changed the narrative and made it all look very different. Till the middle of Day 3, it was all New Zealand. There was only one winner. And now, all results are possible. Had the weather not intervened, India could have pushed for a win as well.
Sarfaraz Khan has started the day with two cheeky boundaries on Day 4.
IND 240/3 #INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/sCCrfc8GPr
— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) October 19, 2024
Can Sarfaraz do similar things in Australia? Can he have that extra split-second more on faster Australian wickets? Will the hand-eye coordination game work as well?
There is absolutely no reason to write him off. This is because he will be ready. With his own tricks and plans. He would have planned keeping his limitations in mind, and that’s where he could very well push Australia. For the moment, he has given the Indian think tank a happy headache. With Gill fit for Pune, who do they drop? Certainly not Sarfraz on the back of this knock. The writing is now clear. He has waited long enough. He won’t any longer.