Sarfaraz Khan Gets His Second Chance as India Rework Test Plans for Sri Lanka

Dr. Annelies De Vos · 2026-08-10

### A Familiar Name Returns to the Fold India have called up Sarfaraz Khan to replace the injured Sai Sudharsan for the upcoming two-match Test series against Sri Lanka. Sudharsan was ruled out after suffering a right toe stress reaction and is currently recovering at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, where the board says he has shown steady improvement. It's a setback for the young batter, but for Sarfaraz, it's a door swinging wide open once again. Sarfaraz, who last featured in a Test back in 2024—the same year he made his debut—returns to the squad after a long wait on the sidelines. He has appeared in six Tests overall, scoring 371 runs at a record that includes one hundred and three half-centuries. Those numbers tell you he belongs at this level, even if the opportunities have been frustratingly rare. ### Sarfaraz Khan's Road Back to the Indian Test Squad Sarfaraz travelled with India's squad for the 2024-25 tour of Australia but never got a chance to play, and selectors left him out entirely for last year's tour of England. You can imagine how tough that must have been—sitting in the dressing room, watching from the balcony, knowing you're good enough but not getting the nod. His domestic form, though, kept him firmly in contention. He finished as Mumbai's third-highest run-scorer in the 2025 Ranji Trophy season, piling up 429 runs across seven matches at an average above 53. That's the kind of consistency that makes selectors take notice. Across his first-class career, his average of 64.73 ranks among the best for any batter with at least 50 innings, a number that explains why the selectors kept returning to his name despite the lack of recent Test cricket. ### Injuries Pile Up as India Prepare for Sri Lanka Tour India head into this series short-handed, with several frontline players unavailable, including Jasprit Bumrah and Washington Sundar. It's never ideal to lose your strike bowler and a handy all-rounder before a big series, but it does create opportunities for others to step up. Captain Shubman Gill did not bat in the first innings of India's warm-up game against the Sri Lanka Cricket XI, a decision that raised questions ahead of the series opener. Spin-bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule moved quickly to clear up any concern, describing the call as purely precautionary rather than injury-related. Gill returned for the second innings and looked comfortable, scoring 44 off 54 balls as India completed the chase on the final day of the tour match. That knock would have settled a few nerves in the camp. > "It was just a precaution more than anything else," Bahutule said after the game ended. He added that Gill had trained normally throughout and that team management simply chose to rest him on the opening day. Bahutule called Gill's second-innings knock flawless and confirmed the captain is fully prepared for the Test series. That's the kind of clarity you want heading into a match that matters. ### Sri Lanka Series Dates and India's World Test Championship Standing The first Test begins on August 15 in Galle, followed by the second match starting August 23 at the SSC in Colombo. Both games carry weight in the ongoing World Test Championship cycle, where India currently sit fifth after four wins and four losses from nine matches. A strong showing in Sri Lanka would help India's push up the table as the WTC standings tighten heading into the business end of the cycle. Every point counts now, and with the race for the final spots getting tighter, India can't afford to slip up. Winning this series would put them in a much healthier position heading into the back half of the cycle. ### India's Test Squad for the Series Here's the full 15-man squad for the two-match series against Sri Lanka: - Shubman Gill (capt) - KL Rahul - Yashasvi Jaiswal - Rishabh Pant (wk) - Dhruv Jurel (wk) - Ravindra Jadeja - Kuldeep Yadav - Manav Suthar - Mohammed Siraj - Prasidh Krishna - Gurnoor Brar - Devdutt Padikkal - Saransh Jain - Auqib Nabi - Sarfaraz Khan It's a balanced squad with a mix of experience and youth, and Sarfaraz's inclusion adds another aggressive option in the middle order. His domestic record suggests he's ready to make the most of this opportunity, and with the team facing a few injury concerns, his timing couldn't be better. For more cricket news and updates, check out the JeetWin blog regularly.