BENGALURU: There was a lot of craze when the then 12-year-old Sarfaraz Khan scored 439 runs to break the Harris Shield record in 2009. He matured into a fine teen, and then went on to notch up 211 runs during India’s quarterfinal run at the 2014 U-19 World Cup. However, it was the two seasons that he spent with Royal Challengers Bangalore (2015 and 2016) when his unorthodox style of batting made him a fan favourite among the franchise’s fans.
There was a sense of expectation that Sarfaraz would again shine with the bat in IPL 2017. But a few days before the commencement of the event, the right-hander was ruled out after being injured during practice.
Fast forward to March, and Sarfaraz is fit and raring to go for the Chinnaswamy Men. “After injuries, a person becomes alone. But my dad and other family members helped me get through that difficult phase. The Challengers took upon all my expenses and they also followed up about my well-being. They kept a close track on my recovery,” said the right-hander at the sidelines of a Star Sports event in the city.
Such an amount of time away from the game can be quite demotivating for a player, but the 20-year-old has made use of the time for working on his fitness and keeping himself match-ready.
With Challengers being led by Virat Kohli, who is himself a fitness freak, there is emphasis on such criteria during the selection of the playing XI. Being benched in 2016 due to fitness and fielding issues, the Uttar Pradesh player has put in the hard yards for both aspects.“I feel that the injury was a good thing for me. After that, my fitness has improved. I’ve been spending time at the gym, and I have worked on my fielding as well. I hope to contribute to the team in victories.”
Sarfaraz has primarily batted for the Challengers as a finisher. But with a new set of players like Pavan Deshpande now in their fold, his role with the bat may not have been exactly identified yet.
However, the team has shown some good faith in his abilities, retaining him ahead of KL Rahul and Chris Gayle. That too despite a poor run of domestic scores in 2018. Sarfaraz is now ready to take on any role for the team.
“Of course, after being retained, the responsibility has increased. I won’t decide what position I will bat at; it is the team which will decide. If they ask me to bat at No 5 or 6, I am ready for that and I will try to be there till the end.
“Whatever role will be entrusted upon me by the team management, I will look to play an important role in helping the team emerge victorious.”
ashimsunam@newindianexpress.com