“I try to stay in the present. I can’t do anything about the past,” said Sarfaraz Khan on the heels of his magnificent 227 off 219 balls in the last Ranji Trophy fixture against Hyderabad. The next game is against Delhi here at MCA Ground in Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) from Thursday. Ahead of that, the Mumbai batter opened up on his India snub.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow,” Sarfaraz told reporters on the match eve. “All I know is that I’m going to go home (now). I’m going to bat at home. I’m going to spend time with my father. I’m going to (come back and) sleep at the hotel. The match is tomorrow. I don’t think about the future. All I know is that I’m going to do what I have been doing for years. I’m going to practise. I’m going to improve. I’m working hard in white-ball cricket, for I want to play for India in white-ball cricket also. I’m paying attention to that.”
Sarfaraz worked on fitness and diet during close season, and shed 17 kilos. He is continuing with his run-scoring spree in domestic cricket. His double century in Hyderabad, against Mohammed Siraj & Co, was his fifth in first-class cricket. Before the match, Sarfaraz had a lengthy conversation with Mohammad Azharuddin about batting. After the double, he credited the former India captain.
Sarfaraz, it is learnt, was considered for the second Test against South Africa in Guwahati after Shubman Gill was ruled out due to a neck injury. Eventually, it didn’t happen. The 28-year-old, however, has an IPL contract with Chennai Super Kings for the 2026 season after going unsold at the previous two auctions.
“My dream was to play with the legends of the generation,” said Sarfaraz. “Like Virat bhai (Kohli), I shared the dressing room with him at RCB. I never thought I would get a chance to share the dressing room with Rohit bhai (Sharma), but I played with him in the Test team. I never thought I would get a chance to play with Mahi bhai (MS Dhoni). But CSK have taken me and I consider myself very lucky.”
For more updates follow Revsportz
