Sarfaraz Khan was recalled by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the two-Test series against Sri Lanka, starting August 15. He was added to the squad as a replacement for injured Sai Sudharsan after the latter failed to recover from his fitness concern. During the Sri Lanka A and India A series, the southpaw sustained a stress fracture in his toe. Since then, he has been working on his fitness and rehabilitation at the Center of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru. Sudharsan was expected to play atleast one Test, but the medical staff didn’t find him fit to take the field.

BCCI issues official statement 

The Indian Cricket Board cleared the air on Sai’s injury and Sarfaraz’s selection for the upcoming bilateral assignment. 

“Sai Sudharsan has been ruled out of the Test series against Sri Lanka,” BCCI said in a statement. “The left-handed batter, who has been at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (COE) in Bengaluru, has made significant progress in his recovery from the right toe stress reaction and is recovering well. The BCCI Medical Team is closely monitoring his progress.”

“The Men’s Selection Committee has named Sarfaraz Khan as a replacement for Sai Sudharsan for the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka. He will link up with the Indian squad in Colombo before the team travels to Galle for the first Test match, starting August 15, 2026,” it added.

Sarfaraz Khan’s reaction 

Sarfaraz Khan, who was out of the national team for a long time, took to social media to post pictures of himself wearing India’s travel jersey after his selection. His father also joined him as he left for Sri Lanka for two red-ball games. His post has gone viral.

He last played for India in the three-match Test series against New Zealand in 2024. He scored his maiden Test century in the second contest, but the home team lost the game and also the series by a margin of 0-3. After the assignment against the Kiwis, he failed to find a spot in the starting XI and was seen warming the bench during the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.

For several seasons, the 28-year-old has been one of the best performers in domestic cricket. In 92 first-class innings,  he has scored 5114 runs at an average of 64.73, with 17 centuries and  16 fifties. He has worked on his fitness to meet the demands of international cricket. Sarfaraz can play spinners with ease, and this quality of the Mumbai-based willow holder must have worked in his favour as he was competing with Sheikh Rasheed for a place after Sudharsan’s series-ending injury.