“It is a bit unfortunate” - Cheteshwar Pujara opens up on Sarfaraz Khan’s exclusion for England tour

Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara has guessed the reason behind the Indian selection committee excluding Sarfaraz Khan for the England tour. Notably, India is all set to tour England for the five-match Test series, starting on June 20 in the new WTC cycle.

While Sarfaraz made his Test debut against England at home in February last year, he wasn’t part of the playing XI on the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 against Australia in December 2024 and January 2024, which India lost by 1-3.

"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.

Moreover, former Indian captain and commentator Sunil Gavaskar has also opened up on the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee omitting Sarfaraz from the squad for the England tour.

"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.

Team India will start the England tour with a four-day warm-up match at the Kent County Cricket Ground in Beckenham from June 13.

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