'I have played with Sarfaraz's father in Kanga League': Rohit Sharma reveals he was lost in debut of 'these boys' in England Test series

Indian skipper Rohit Sharma on March 20 joined the Mumbai Indians (MI) camp ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Before the T20 extravaganza begins, Rohit revealed that he was long in the debut of his young "mischievous" teammates during the 4-1 Test series victory over Ben Stokes' England.
 

As many as five players -- Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Akash Deep and Devdutt Padikkal – made their Test debut in the five-Test series in the absence of big names Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami and others. 
 

"Personally, mujhe inke saath kaam karke bahut maza aya. Jitne bhi young ladke the... sabkaafi chulbule the. (I really loved playing with them. All of them are very mischievous)," Rohit said on his Instagram handle "Team Ro".
 

"I knew most of them well and what their strengths are and how they want to play the game. It was just for me to give them the comfort by talking about how good they are and the good things they have done in the past. The way they responded to me and Rahul bhai (coach Rahul Dravid) was superb."

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Sarfaraz's father was ‘an aggressive player’

Rohit revealed that he had played with Sarfaraz’s father Naushad Khan in Mumbai’s Kanga League. 
 

"I was lost in the debut of all these boys. Their parents were also there, there were a lot of emotions. I really enjoyed seeing their debuts. I was just lost in their debuts. I was enjoying their debuts so much because their parents were there. There was so much emotion. I have played with Sarfaraz’s father in Kanga league when I was very young.

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"His father was a left handed batter. He was an aggressive player and very well known in Mumbai cricket circles. I wanted to acknowledge his effort and hard work that had paid off with his son playing for India. I just wanted to tell him that his son’s Test cap belongs as much to him as his son," the 36-year-old said.

Rohit to play under Pandya

While Sarfaraz was not picked in the auction, Jurel, Deep, Patidar, and Padikkal will be in action in IPL 2024. Also, Rohit will play in the captaincy of Hardik Pandya for the first time on March 24 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on March 24.
 

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