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Sarfaraz Khan could not hold back his tears when the legendary Anil Kumble presented him with his first Test cap, just before the start of the third Test between India and England Rajkot. Next to him was his wife, who was also overcome with emotions. She then ran to his father Naushad, the most influential figure in his life, and hugged him. “I will cry all day when I play for my country,” he had once told the Indian Express.
As the day progressed, he also brought some of the English players to the brink of tears, as his robust 62 off 66 balls, brutally interrupted by a run, played a major role in helping his country score 326 for five . Throughout the knock he showed boldness, composure and will, virtues that showed that he belongs at Test level. England’s bowlers tested him with everything they could – pace and seam bowling, multi-pitch spin and funky placements on the pitch – but he had an answer to every question they posed to him. As if he had an answer to every obstacle he had to overcome to get this far.
Theirs is a fascinating story of passion and perseverance. For almost 15 years, she got up every day at five so that she could reach Cross Maidan for practice at 6:30 am. She spent hours perfecting her batting skills on the dusty fields. Those days she couldn’t go; He and his brother Musheer, India’s second-best run-getter in the U-19 World Cup, were practicing on a special cricket pitch that Naushad had prepared just outside his house. Naushad would spend hours dishing out knockdowns, paying rival teams to play friendly matches in which Sarfaraz would bat every innings regardless of whether the team lost or not.
Life was not easy for the Khans. Naushad, who once sold sweets and cucumbers in trains and also sold sweatpants after migrating from Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh to supplement the meager income he received as a Class Four employee in Western Railway, once recounted what his son Sarfaraz had told him. said in the past. “We come from the slums, we used to queue to go to the bathroom, where my children were slapped and overtaken. We come from nothing and we will return to nothing. Sarfaraz told me one day: ‘Abbu, what if this (playing for India) doesn’t happen? “We can always sell sweatpants again.”
All those memories would have flashed through his mind as he waited almost four overs for his turn to bat. “I was padded for four hours but I told myself that I had had a lot of patience, time to save more,” he would reveal at the press conference.
But when it came time to bat, he showed no nerves. It was a dream come true for both father and son. “My dream was to play for India opposite him. At first my father was not going to go down to the ground. But some people requested it and he came to witness this very special moment. I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders now that I haven’t let my father’s efforts go to waste,” Sarfaraz said after the day’s play. As it turned out, it was Suryakumar Yadav, Sarfaraz’s Mumbai teammate, who convinced him to go to Rajkot.
Their morning, however, began like any other morning, listening to the film’s title song, Dangal, sung by Daler Mehendi and Pritam. The song talks about struggle and inspirations, and he could relate to that. Sarfaraz’s problems continued on the field as well. He sweated to break the code of consistency, and even when he did, he had to wait for his turn to come, despite three seasons of Bradmanesque numbers. He was picked in the Indian squad to tour Bangladesh in December 2022, but was dropped when the senior players returned. Word got out that he’s not comfortable dealing with pace and bounce. An indifferent IPL did not help his cause.
There were times when both father and son seemed frustrated with the supposedly unfair treatment. But Naushad, a lover of shayari, would advise her son, “Rakh hausla woh manzar bhi aayega, pyaasey ke paas samundar bhi aayega” (stay determined, that sight will appear; the sea will come to the thirsty). There is another favorite quote of his: ‘Thak kar na baith ae manzil ke musafir’. Manzil bhi milegi aur milne ka mazaa bhi aayega’. (Do not be weary, O traveler, you will not only reach your destination but you will also experience the joy and fun of getting there.)
Now every fight seems worth it. If he can continue this fairy tale, building on his dramatic start to his Test career, it will be his track pants and t-shirts that would sell like hot cakes in markets across the country. And more tears of joy would be shed in the field and in Khan’s house.