Sarfaraz Khan had dream debut before he was unfortunately run out after making one of the most entertaining debuts by an Indian cricketer. Sarfaraz, who earlier in the day had finally realised his dream of playing for India in front of his family, was playing a blitzkrieg, striking a 48-ball half-century, the joint second-fastest by an Indian on debut. He was batting on 62 off 66 balls before his innings came to a brutal halt.
Sarfaraz arrived at the crease when Jadeja was 16 runs short of a century. When Jadeja reached 99, Sarfaraz already crossed the 60-run mark in his first-ever Test innings for the Asian giants. Hoping to help Jadeja reach the triple-digit figures, Sarfaraz had a mix-up with his teammate, which led to the dismissal of the Mumbai batter. Jadeja turned down a single after Sarfaraz responded. Cashing in on the mix-up, England's Mark Wood fired a direct hit to hand Sarfaraz his marching orders.
Reflecting on the partnership between the two batters, legendary Indian spinner Anil Kumble opined that Jadeja went into a shell after entering the nervous 90s. “Yes, Sarfaraz was dominating the partnership but Jadeja, I thought, got into a shell and that sometimes creates a mindset where you are not clear about the decision-making. Maybe, that was one of the reasons and possibility I passed on my bad luck of my debut run-out to Sarfaraz!,” Kumble told JioCinema.
Notably, Kumble was also run out for 2 on his Test debut way back in 1990 against England in Manchester.Sarfaraz and wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel received their debut caps in the 3rd Test against England at Rajkot. Announcing himself in Test cricket, Sarfaraz smashed his first-ever half-century in just 48 balls. The 26-year-old joined Hardik Pandya by scoring the joint-fastest fifty by an Indian batter on Test debut.
