Team India captain Rohit Sharma is running out of options in the ongoing Test series against England. With Virat Kohli opting out of the entire series due to personal reasons and, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer battling with injuries, India's batting line-up doesn't seem to boast the same aura that it did not a long time ago. The absence of veterans like Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane has only forced Rohit and the team management to give a chance to youngsters, who have proved their potential in the domestic circuit.
In the second Test match in Visakhapatnam, Rajat Patidar made his Test debut, and as it stands, two more batters are likely to mark their Test debuts for India in the upcoming Test in Rajkot.
Sarfaraz Khan set to make his Test debut
It seems like Sarfaraz Khan's time has finally arrived, albeit under different circumstances. With Shreyas Iyer not named in India's squad for the remaining three Tests against England and with Rahul getting ruled out of the Rajkot Test, Mumbai batter Sarfaraz is almost assured of receiving his maiden Test cap.
Talking about the right-handed batter, Sarfaraz's numbers in First-class cricket are off the charts. The 26-year-old has been knocking on the doors of Team India for quite some time and his consistent performance over a long period earned him a national call-up. In 45 First-Class matches, Sarfaraz has scored 3,912 at a stellar average of 69.85 with the help of 14 centuries and 11 half-centuries.
It would be interesting to see where Sarfaraz bats, will it be the No.4 or the No.5?
Dhruv Jurel likely to replace struggling KS Bharat
In the previous two Tests, wicketkeeper-batter KS Bharat's performance, both with the bat and the gloves, was below par. The right-handed batter has aggregated just 92 runs in four innings while making a couple of big mistakes behind the stumps. Thus, the Indian team management would be tempted to give young star Dhruv Jurel a chance to express himself on the big stage.
Dhruv Jurel has played 15 First-Class matches in his career so far, scoring 790 runs in the process at an average of 46.47. The 23-year-old has registered one century and five fifties.
It would be fascinating to see what Rohit Sharma decides to do, especially with the series tied at 1-1. The 3rd Test is scheduled to begin on February 15.
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