‘I enjoyed Sarfaraz’s batting, I was intrigued to see him’ – England legend Alastair Cook in awe of debutant Sarfaraz Khan after Rajkot knock

The former England captain and legend Alastair Cook was in awe of the new debutant Sarfaraz Khan who bazballed the visitors coupled with some classical strokeplay in the purest format of the game like the good old days in Rajkot. Notably, the young Mumbai-based batter has been knocking on the Indian selection doors for quite a long time. Khan not only made his debut when Team India were under pressure but also went on to script by becoming the second-joint fastest Indian after Hardik Pandya to slam a fifty in just 48 deliveries for India while on debut.

Although Sarfaraz Khan was unlucky to miss out on a probable century the next day after he found himself well short of the crease, courtesy of a darting throw by pacer Mark Wood ended his charismatic batting display. However, like all the fans and experts alike, Alastair Cook too was no exception in appreciating and garnering praise for the youngster. The legendary southpaw said that he thoroughly enjoyed Sarfaraz’s batting. Moreover, he also pointed out his mind-boggling domestic stats were for a reason and it reflected in how the youngster played the ball late while attacking the spinners with positive intent as well. Interestingly enough, he also referred to Ravindra Jadeja’s triple century in the domestic circuit while indicating to placid wickets of India.

“I enjoyed Sarfaraz’s batting. I was intrigued to see him because you don’t average 70 runs in first-class cricket without being a serious player or run-getter,” Cook was quoted as saying by TNT Sports.

“You sometimes question some of the stats in the Ranji Trophy because they play on some really flat wickets – Jadeja has got a triple hundred there. But actually, this guy can bat. It was a real shame he was run out. I liked how positive he was and how late he played the ball to the spinners,” the England legend further added.

Also Read: IND vs ENG: Ravindra Jadeja apologises to Sarfaraz Khan after unfortunate run out on Day 1

Team India on top after Rohit-Jadeja tons, Sarfaraz’s fifty made India finish Day 1 strongly

Meanwhile, speaking of the ongoing third Test of the series, Team India suffered some early jolts and were staring down the barrel in the morning session with the score reading 33/3. However, skipper Rohit Sharma (131 off 196) and all rounder Ravindra Jadeja (110* off 212), who was promoted up the order took charge of the batting unit and held the fort for Team India. Consequently, the duo put up a 204-run solid stand for the fourth wicket to bring India back into the game. But just when Sharma was looking all set for another daddy hundred, a bumper from Mark Wood did the trick and he fell into the ploy to hand his wicket to England.

Thereafter, it was the Sarfaraz Khan show who showed his courage and also milked the balls around to keep the scoreboard ticking. This led him to forge a 77-run stand with Ravindra Jadeja first to keep England looking for wickets later in the evening. At this moment, Team India are 326/5 at stumps with Kuldeep Yadav at the crease as the nightwatchman.