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Suryakumar Yadav’s advice to Sarfaraz Khan drives him to another Ranji century

After his name did not feature in the India Test squad for the recent Bangladesh tour, Sarfaraz Khan got a text message from his childhood friend Suryakumar Yadav. It had just four words: “Aur lamba maarte reh [Keep playing big knocks].”
Yadav has known for years what it means to wait in hope before every national selection committee meeting, to be so close yet so far away from that elusive India call-up. Having been through that same agonising phase, Yadav did not give Sarfaraz a shoulder to lean on; instead he offered his friend sane advice.
And Sarfaraz has continued what he has been doing for the past three domestic seasons – scoring marathon runs in red-ball cricket. After piling up 928 and 982 runs in the 2019-20 and 2021-22 Ranji seasons, Sarfaraz has tallied 388 in five innings this season so far. On their part, the selectors have kept telling him that he is on their radar and that his time will come soon. (READ MORE)