3 players who shone in their comeback Test series

It is always difficult for a cricketer to make a comeback after being dropped or not being considered for selection. With the amount of cricket being played these days, there are fringe players on the bench who are looking to grab their opportunities once they get a place in the playing XI.

However, at times an experienced player on his comeback proves critics wrong and cements a permanent place in the squad.

Here's look at three such cricketers who shone in their comeback Test series in recent times.

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#1 Sarfaraz Ahmed

Former Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed recently had an incredible Test series against New Zealand at home. In four innings of both Tests at Karachi, Ahmed scored 335 runs with three half-centuries and a century. He had an incredible average of 83.75 in the series and looked at ease every time he went into bat.

Sarfaraz played well with the lower middle order and the tail and rescued Pakistan on numerous occasions in the series and was named the Player of the series.

Ahead of the series, Sarfaraz last played a Test match in January 2019 and thereafter was not considered for selection in the Playing XI. Pakistan's regular keeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan was not in the best of touch with the bat in the series against England and made way for the experienced Sarfaraz against the Kiwi team.

It will be difficult for Pakistan to look beyond Sarfaraz as far as Test cricket is concerned.

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#2 Steve Smith

Steve Smith was Australia's Man of the Series in the 2019 Ashes

Steve Smith was banned by Cricket Australia in March 2018 for 12 months in light of the ball-tampering incident.

Smith's first major assignment post his ban was the Ashes in England in 2019. However, Smith continued from where he left off and had one of the best series of his career with the bat.

The former Australian skipper scored 774 runs from seven innings at an astounding average of 110.57. He scored three centuries and as many half-centuries in the series.

A strong English bowling line-up comprising James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer, Chris Woakes, and Ben Stokes had no reply to stop the onslaught from Smith throughout the series. The Ashes ended with both teams winning two games apiece and one game being a draw.

Smith's remarkable comeback is one of the best in modern-day cricket.

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#3 Sourav Ganguly

Ganguly made an incredible comeback in Test cricket in 2006

Sourav Ganguly was dropped from the Test team post India's tour of Pakistan in January 2006. However, he was recalled on a tough away assignment when India toured South Africa in the month of December 2006.

India had never won a Test on South African soil until this tour and had their task cut out against a strong South African bowling attack comprising Shaun Pollock, Dale Steyn, Makhaya Ntini, Andre Nel and Jacques Kallis on a green pitch at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg in the first Test.

Ganguly was the only Indian player to hit a half-century in the first innings while scoring an unbeaten 51. He scored 25 runs in the second innings as India won its first-ever Test in South Africa.

Ganguly accumulated 214 runs in the series at an average of 42.80 on difficult batting wickets. He was the top-scorer for the visitors in the three-match series.