"He is a short guy who always stays beside the ball": Aakash Chopra hails Sarfaraz Khan

Sarfaraz Khan. Pic/PTI

It is no secret that Sarfaraz Khan is a pro at finding runs via unorthodox methods and in areas rarely accessed by Indian Test batters. The first Test in Bengaluru was an illustration of this aspect - where 96 of his 150 runs in the second innings came behind the wicket.

With supple wrists, solid bat swing, and nimble footwork, Sarfaraz brought out an array of ramp shots, cuts and sweeps through the square of the wicket, especially in the third-man region, to leave the viewers in awe at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium - the venue where he first shot into limelight as a teenager in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Aakash Chopra, the former India opener, on Wednesday dissected Sarfaraz's unique technique of getting big runs in the longer format. "The way Sarfaraz plays is very different. Usually, we talk about going behind the ball and when you go behind the ball, you tend to play more towards the front."

"He is a short guy who always stays beside the ball. He doesn't move much on the back foot because he is short in height, so the good-length delivery becomes a short-pitched ball for him. So, that allows him to play the horizontal bat shots very easily and because he always stays beside the line, he has that room to play," said Chopra, an expert with JioCinema & Sports18, to IANS in a select virtual interaction on Wednesday.

He also thinks bowling line-ups are yet to figure out how to formulate plans for countering a heavy run-making batter like Sarfaraz. "He has got this unique technique in which he has a lot of confidence and is extremely successful. Till now, people have not understood him actually."

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"In first-class cricket, they might still understand that you can play with the third man in the beginning, get the point fielder back and you don't have to bowl a short ball, to try make him drive. But till now, at least New Zealand couldn't figure it out in the first Test match, and by the time they did, it was too late."

"So, it is a unique way of playing and that's what I think cricket keeps showing and throwing at us that whatever understanding you have about the game, it can be changed any day. People can be so successful with unique techniques - they used to say after seeing Jasprit Bumrah's action that he would get injured every third day. But that's the beauty of our sport I feel - that you keep getting different surprises in regular intervals," added Chopra.

After the eight-wicket defeat in Bengaluru, India added off-spin bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar to their squad and whether he gets to play on a slow-turning black-soil pitch at Pune wasn't given away by head coach Gautam Gambhir on the eve of the game. Chopra found Washington's inclusion, despite the presence of Ravichandran Ashwin, as an interesting decision.

"There are a lot of hypotheses around it, and we are trying to think what could be their case. I am not privy to any inside information either. If Ashwin is playing, do you really need two off-spinners? A left-arm spinner and a wrist spinner in Kuldeep? If that is where India is going, then maybe Siraj is not playing."

"Once we reach Pune, we will find if it is actually a rank-turner that has been prepared. If yes, India does not need to actually play another fast bowler. So, all things are up in the air right now. With one selection, of course, it has led to a lot of confusion for the people on the outside."

"I am sure the team knows what they are doing, and what kind of pitch has been dished out. It is just that we are trying to figure out the combination, new addition and stuff like that. But honestly, I have got no 100% answer with regards to why Washy is there. If he is there, what exactly is going to happen?"

With India 1-0 behind in the series, the Test at Pune is a chance for them to come back from behind. Chopra stated this can happen, provided India doesn't repeat the mistakes committed with the bat and ball in their eight-wicket defeat in Bengaluru.

"If we batted well enough and better in the first Test match, we would have won the game there as well. I was very confident and bullish about it. It's okay if we collapse once, but if we collapse twice in a single Test match, especially after being 408/3 in the second innings, then it's very difficult to bounce back."

"In bowling, we allowed a partnership (between Tim Southee and Rachin Ravindra) to prosper. Unfortunately, they all happened in the same match. So, India will try to rectify those things, as if we do man-to-man marking, we know that India is a better side."

All eyes will be on Ravindra, who shone in Bengaluru with an excellent 134 and a sparkling 39 not out. Chopra signed off by explaining the standout points for him about Ravindra's batting in Tests, especially in his takedown of the Indian spin bowling line-up.

"He has batted beautifully. I mean, it won't be an exaggeration to say that he played spin like an Indian batter. He didn't look like somebody who was born and brought up in New Zealand. His hands are very, very soft, crafty and flexible, apart from very precise foot movement. His command over his defence, the confidence that he has and then the shots that he possesses were impressive."

"Two more points stood out: one is, that he has played spin like we Indians would, and second was the maturity with which he actually played because if you look at his career, it is a very young career. A lot of people tend to struggle the first time when they visit India, especially in the longer format. But Rachin Ravindra looked absolutely at ease. So, kudos to him for the way he has actually batted."

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