Sarfaraz says father motivates him amid wait for India recall

Sarfaraz Khan said his father remains his main motivation as he continues playing domestic cricket while waiting for another opportunity with India’s Test team. He made the remarks after scoring a half-century for Mumbai against Railways in the Ranji Trophy at Brabourne Stadium. The batter said he sometimes questions why he should keep working hard after having already played for India. He said his father, Naushad Khan, encourages him to continue training and scoring runs. Sarfaraz described a routine of waking early for practice and said he would keep playing for Mumbai if he was not selected for India. Sarfaraz made his Test debut in February 2024 and has played six Tests, all in India. His most recent appearance came against New Zealand in November 2024. He scored 150 in that series, but his final four innings against New Zealand brought scores of 11, 9, 0 and 1. He was later part of India’s squad in Australia without playing. He was called into India’s setup for the Sri Lanka tour as an injury replacement for Sai Sudharsan, but said he did not receive a playing opportunity and returned to Mumbai cricket. Sarfaraz said he had heard from people in the Indian team that he was...