“If you are looking for slim and trim guys, go to a fashion show” – Sunil Gavaskar slams selectors for ignoring Sarfaraz Khan

Sunil Gavaskar has hit out at the All-India Senior Selection Committee for ignoring the in-form Sarfaraz Khan for the Test series against Australia at home.

The former India captain slammed the selectors, citing that they should go to a fashion show if they are overlooking Sarfaraz for shape or size. Gavaskar further opined that cricketers should be judged solely on their performances.

The cricketer-turned-commentator even pointed out that Sarfaraz is available full-time on the field despite batting for long hours in the Ranji Trophy.

Speaking on India Today, Gavaskar said:

“If you are looking for only slim and trim guys, then might as well go to a fashion show and find some other models and give a bat and ball in their hands and then improve them. That’s not the way cricket goes. You have cricketers in all shapes and sizes. Don’t go by the size, go by the scores or wickets.”

He added:

“He is not staying off the field when he scores a hundred. He is back on the field again. So, all that tells you is that the man is fit.”

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“Cricket fitness is the most important thing; Yo-Yo Test can’t be the only criteria” – Sunil Gavaskar’s message to selectors

Sunil Gavaskar further said Team India players should be selected based on cricket fitness and not just the Yo-Yo Test. He questioned how Sarfaraz Khan had scored so many runs in the Ranji Trophy over the previous three seasons if he wasn't fit.

“How can you score runs? I think at the end of the day if you are unfit, you aren’t gonna score hundreds,"he said. "Cricket fitness is the most important thing. Yo-Yo Test can’t be the only criterion. You got to make sure that the man is cricket fit as well. If the person, whoever it is, is cricket fit, then I don’t think it should be any matter.”

In a recent conversation with the Times of India, Sarfaraz suggested that he wasn’t left out because of his fitness. He said:

“I am very fit. Everyone has a different body structure, you can’t change it. I’ve cleared all the yo-yo tests (mandatory fitness test) in the past.”

For the uninitiated, Sarfaraz has amassed 556 runs in six games for Mumbai in the ongoing Ranji Trophy, including three centuries. He also scored 982 and 928 runs in the last two seasons (including seven hundred) at an average of 122.75 and 154.67, respectively.