The head of selection committee Ajit Agarkar announced India's 18-member squad for the upcoming five-match Test assignment against England on Saturday. Several changes were made to the team as Shubman Gill was appointed as the new skipper in the format while Rishabh Pant was made his deputy. Some notable players like Sarfaraz Khan, Mohammed Shami and Shreyas Iyer weren't given a spot in the team.
Sarfaraz Khan hasn't played Test cricket for India since the New Zealand series
Sarfaraz, who last played Test cricket for India in the three-match series against New Zealand in 2024, failed to get a spot in the team for the England series and fresh faces like Sai Sudharsan and Abhimanyu Easwaran were given the nod over him.
Though the 27-year-old played a sensational knock of 150 in the first Test of the series against New Zealand, his form severely dropped in the next two matches and was only able to score a total of 21 runs in the next four innings.
Following the batter's snub from India's Test squad, veteran player Cheteshwar Pujara pointed out that one of the reasons why Sarfaraz wasn't included is because the team management doesn't trust him to perform on the England tracks.
"The reason he is not in the squad, I feel, is he has been very successful in the Asian conditions or in India. The management feels that he may not be as successful in Australia or in England. And there were some fitness issues in the past. I don't know about his current fitness. But he has been working hard on his fitness also. So, at this stage, I feel it's a bit unfortunate. But at the same time, someone like Karun Nair, who has performed really well in domestic cricket, deserved an opportunity," Pujara told Hindustan Times.
Despite getting picked for the Men in Blue's squad for the Border-Gavaskar series 2024/25, Sarfaraz wasn't given a chance to play in the team in any of the five Tests.
Ahead of the England series, the batter underwent a body transformation and ended up losing 10 kilograms by following a strict dietary plan. His dedication didn't go unnoticed and he was givben a place in the India A squad that will play two Tests against the England Lions before the India-England series commences from June 20. If Sarfaraz gives 1-2 standout batting performances for India A, he can very well make a comeback into the Indian team