Pujara's Blunt Take On Sarfaraz Test Snub: "Management Feels He May Not..."

Cheteshwar Pujara has opened up on Sarfaraz Khan's snub from India's Test squad for the upcoming series against England. Sarfaraz didn't find a place in India's 18-man squad that was announced on Saturday, ahead of a five-match series starting June 20. Sarfaraz had travelled with the team to Australia as part of the squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, but he didn't play a single game. Pujara, who was one of the hopefuls over a potential Test return, said the selectors thought Sarfaraz might not succeed in England. 

"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.

After toiling in domestic red-ball cricket for years, Sarfaraz finally made his way to India's Test side, making his debut against England in February last year. However, the batter didn't play a single game in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia before being dropped from the team entirely.

Reflecting on the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee's decision to drop Sarfaraz, who also shed 10 kgs of weight before the England tour, the legendary Sunil Gavaskar had some bitter truths to share.

"It's tough, that's what cricket is all about. When you get opportunities, you have to make sure the place is yours. Even if you score a hundred, you should make sure that you don't go into your next innings thinking you scored a hundred in the previous knock. You have to get your eye in and get those runs again. You must not give anybody a chance to push you out of the team," Gavaskar told India Today.

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