Sarfaraz Khan made the scapegoat of India's Test losses vs New Zealand and Australia

The Indian selection committee announced the Indian Test squad for England tour 2025 on Saturday. Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar was quite disappointed with Sarfaraz Khan’s omission from the Test squad.

Sarfaraz scored a century in his first Test against New Zealand at home, but failed in the next two Test matches. After that, Sarfaraz didn’t get the chance to play in the Border-Gavaskar trophy in Australia.

Although angry by Sarfaraz's snub, Sunil Gavaskar was impressed with Karun Nair’s selection for the England tour.

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Sunil Gavaskar's disappointment

Indian cricketing legend Sunil Gavaskar wasn’t happy after Sarfaraz Khan was dropped from the Indian Test squad. Gavaskar advised players not to take anything for granted and to keep performing their best game in every match.

“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 stated.

Gavaskar stated that the decision to drop Sarfaraz would have been tough on him, as he didn’t get the opportunity in Australia, and after that, he was injured and didn’t get a chance to showcase his form to the management.

Gavaskar also pointed out that if a team loses a series, then the 13th, 14th, and 15th players in the squad are dropped easily, and Sarfaraz became the victim of the Australian series loss.

Ajit Agarkar on Sarfaraz Khan’s exclusion

The chief selector, Ajit Agarkar, stated that the exclusion of Sarfaraz Khan from the squad decision was taken by the team management to find the best players for the team.

Agarkar hailed Sarfaraz to score a ton in his debut Test match, but after that, he didn’t perform up to the mark in the next Test series.

“Whether it's fair on somebody or unfair on someone, those are the choices that you make in the best interest of the team,” Agarkar said in the press conference.

Sarfaraz Khan’s recent form

Sarfaraz Khan made an impressive debut against England in the home Test series in 2024, but in the next series against New Zealand, things changed for him as he didn’t perform in the next home series. After that, Sarfaraz didn’t get a single chance to play in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.

Sarfaraz also missed Ranji Trophy games due to injury, and despite working hard on his fitness and shredding almost 10 kgs weight in the last 6 weeks, Indian selectors feel that Sarfaraz isn't the right man for the job in England.