[Watch] Sarfaraz Khan's father gets teary-eyed as his son receives Test cap from Anil Kumble
Ace batter Sarfaraz Khan will make his Test debut in the third Test against England at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot on Thursday. He has been one such cricketer who has barged through the selection doors with plenty of runs on the domestic circuit and for India A.
With KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer out of the playing XI and Virat Kohli not available for selection, Sarfaraz was handed the debut cap in Rajkot. He received his Test cap from former Indian skipper and head coach Anil Kumble. The youngster became the 311th cricketer to represent the Men in Blue in Tests.
As Sarfaraz received his maiden cap, his father Naushad Khan watched from a distance. Naushad, who has been the architect of the middle-order batter's career, got teary-eyed and was seen hiding his eyes from the camera. Naushad was also seen kissing his son's Test cap sometime later.
Watch the clip here:
Sarfaraz Khan has been a consistent performer for Mumbai in domestic cricket. He has amassed 3,912 runs at a staggering average of 69.85 in 45 first-class games. The right-handed batter also scored a mammoth 161 in the second unofficial Test against England Lions and helped India A win the series 2-0.
"The next three Test matches will be as exciting as the first two" - Indian skipper Rohit Sharma
The five-match Test series between India and England is evenly poised at 1-1 with three matches still to play. Ben Stokes and company won the first Test in Hyderabad before the home side bounced back to level the series in Visakhapatnam.
Speaking at the toss, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma asserted that the next games would also be as exciting as it was in the first two
"The next three Test matches will be as exciting as the first two. Need to keep our focus here and see how we can do well," Rohit said.
India made four changes to their playing XI for the third Test. Mohammed Siraj and Ravindra Jadeja made their way back alongside debutants Sarfaraz Khan, and Dhruv Jurel. Axar Patel, Mukesh Kumar, Shreyas Iyer, and KS Bharat have been left out of the playing XI.