Sarfaraz Khan smashes third hundred of Ranji Trophy 2022-23

Sarfaraz Khan smashed his third hundred of the ongoing Ranji Trophy during Mumbai’s sixth round match against Delhi on Tuesday.

Sarfaraz Khan celebrates his century against Delhi on the first day of the Ranji Trophy match at the Arun Jaitley Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

Sarfaraz Khan smashed his third hundred of the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2022-23 season during Mumbai’s Round 6 match against Delhi at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Tuesday.

Sarfaraz reached the three-digit mark off 135 balls with a single off Yogesh Sharma. He was eventually dismissed by Yogesh for 125 off 155 deliveries.

The right-hander had scored 162 against Tamil Nadu earlier this month and an unbeaten 126 versus Hyderabad in December last year.

The 25-year-old was the leading run-scorer during the last Ranji Trophy season, amassing 982 runs at an average of 122.75 in Mumbai’s run to the final. He struck four hundreds and two half-centuries in that season and had a top score of 275 against Saurashtra.

The Mumbai batter has had a dream run in domestic First-Class cricket since the Ranji Trophy 2019-20 season, when he plundered 928 runs and averaged 154.66 to emerge as the tournament’s fifth-highest run-getter.

Despite his incredible returns in domestic cricket, an India call-up has eluded Sarfaraz, leading to several former cricketers and fans questioning his non-selection.

Last year against New Zealand A, Sarfaraz scored 99 runs in three innings at average of 33.00. Despite his lacklustre returns in that series, he roared back to form in the Duleep Trophy final with an unbeaten 127 in the second innings against South Zone, helping West Zone clinch the title.

Sarfaraz boasts of the second-highest average in First-Class cricket history. He averages a whopping 80.47 in 36 matches, second only to the legendary Sir Don Bradman, who averaged 95.14 in 234 games.