Irfan Pathan talks about Sarfaraz's chances of playing in Vizag Test against England
India lost the first Test of the series by 28 runs which was played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, in Hyderabad
NEW DELHI: Former all-rounder Irfan Pathan on Wednesday talked about Sarafraz Khan's selection and feels that it would be "difficult" for him to play in India's second Test against England at Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium.
India lost the first Test of the series by 28 runs which was played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, in Hyderabad. Both teams will lock horns against each other in the second match of the series at Vishakhapatnam on Friday.
Pathan congratulated the Mumbai batter and said that he is very happy with the inclusion of him but it would be difficult for him to straight get into the playing XI.
"First of all congratulations to Sarfaraz Khan for getting into the team after a brilliant performance in domestic cricket. This is a small victory for each and every player who is playing domestic cricket and scoring runs. I was really happy as he was selected. However, it would be difficult for him to get into the playing XI as there are players like Rajat Patidar who have been waiting for a long time," Pathan said at an event on Wednesday.
The left-arm seamer further stated that it would be a headache for the management to set the combination as they are trailing the series against England 0-1.
"It would be a headache for team India to set the combination for the second Test as they are trailing 0-1 to England. India will be looking to bounce back in the second match and try not to lose the series. However, in India, it doesn't matter whether you win or lose the series but we don't expect to lose the series as well. So the Indian Cricket Team and management will be under pressure so they will bank on experience," the 39-year-old added.
Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul were taken off from the squad after they sustained injuries. Following that Sarfaraz, Sourabh Kumar, and Washington Sundar to India's squad. Jadeja suffered a hamstring injury during play on Day 4 of the first Test in Hyderabad. Meanwhile, Rahul complained of right quadriceps pain.
India's updated Squad for 2nd Test vs England: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, KS Bharat (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Avesh Khan, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Washington Sundar, Sourabh Kumar.