Duckett leads England's robust reply with blazing hundred
RAJKOT, India :Opener Ben Duckett smashed an 88-ball hundred to lead England's robust reply to India's first innings total of 445 on day two of the third test in Rajkot on Friday.
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RAJKOT, India :Opener Ben Duckett smashed an 88-ball hundred to lead England's robust reply to India's first innings total of 445 on day two of the third test in Rajkot on Friday.
Sarfaraz Khan's dream turned into reality on Thursday, February 15 as the batter received his debut cap for the ongoing third Test against England in Rajkot. For long, Sarfaraz has been knocking on the door for his selection, amassing tons of runs for years in the Ranji Trophy, India's premiere four-day red-ball tournament. Despite scoring runs for fun Sarfaraz was often ignored by selectors. However, both Sarfaraz and his father Naushad Khan emphasised on following the process.
Though the duo of Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja scored centuries to put India in the driving seat on Day 1 of the third Test against England, it was the debutant Sarfaraz Khan who remained the biggest talking point. After grinding in domestic cricket for years, the biggest moment in Sarfaraz's career came on Thursday as he earned the India cap from the hands of the legendary Anil Kumble. Before the start of the match, however, even India skipper Rohit Sharma had a heartwarming conversation with Sarfaz's father who was in attendance as his sone realised his dream of representing India.
After years of toiling in the domestic circuit, India batter Sarfaraz Khan made his debut in the longest format during the ongoing third Test against England in Rajkot. In 45 first-class matches, Sarfaraz scored 3,912 runs at an average of 69.85, with 14 centuries and 11 fifties, with the best score being 301 not out. He also did well for India A, scoring 96 in a Tour match then 4, 55, and 161 in two unofficial Tests against the England Lions recently.
All that Sarfaraz Khan wanted since the beginning of his cricket journey as a six-year-old was to become an international player in front of his father. Two decades later, that dream came true on Thursday for the Mumbaikar when he was handed his Test cap ahead of the third match against England by no less than former captain Anil Kumble with his father Naushad watching tearfully. As was expected, he proved his worth with a half-century which could have been a bigger knock if not for the run-out at non-striker's end following a mix-up with unbeaten centurion Ravindra Jadeja.
If it wasn't for India batter Suryakumar Yadav, the father of Sarfaraz Khan would not have been present to see his son get the coveted Test cap from Anil Kumble. Naushad Khan was in attendance along with Sarfaraz's wife on day one of the third Test between India and England at the Niranjan Shah Stadium. Tears rolled down Naushad's eyes as he witnessed his son get the India cap. Sarfaraz ended up making a strokeful 62 on debut.
Emotions ran high in the Indian team's huddle this morning when domestic batting star Sarfaraz Khan and wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel were handed their Test caps on debut, before the start of play for the third Test against England on Thursday. A consistent performer on the domestic circuit for Mumbai, Sarfaraz has been in contention for national selection for a long time but the 26-year-old has had to wait for his chance to break into the Indian Test side. Having received his maiden India call-up earlier in the series, Sarfaraz was in line for debut ever since India lost the services of KL Rahul for this Test and also given that his Mumbai teammate Shreyas Iyer lost his spot and Virat Kohli is unavailable.
Ravichandran Ashwin is on the verge of surpassing legendary Indian cricket team spinner Anil Kumble to claim a sensational record in the third Test match against England in Rajkot starting Thursday. The veteran cricketer is just five wickets away from becoming the Indian bowler with the highest Test wickets at home. Kumble currently holds the record with 350 wickets from 63 matches while Ashwin has taken 346 wickets from 57 matches. Overall, Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan holds the record with 493 wickets from 73 matches with the help of 45 five-wicket hauls and 15 ten-wicket hauls.