“An Outrage”: Shashi Tharoor Criticises Selectors After Sarfaraz Khan’s Omission

Shashi Tharoor criticised the selectors for overlooking Sarfaraz Khan despite his strong domestic record and consistent performances.

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor criticised the national selectors for overlooking consistent domestic performers like Sarfaraz Khan and Abhimanyu Easwaran. Sarfaraz, who scored 74 runs in Mumbai’s win against Jammu and Kashmir in the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 opener, has been ignored despite an impressive first-class average of over 65. He played six Tests in 2024, including scores of 50 and 150, but was later dropped. Easwaran too faced a similar fate, missing out on the West Indies Tests despite earlier squad inclusion.

Tharoor urged the selectors to value consistent domestic form instead of relying heavily on perceived potential or IPL performances.

“This is frankly an outrage. @SarfarazA_54 averages 65-plus in first class cricket, scored a 50 on Test debut and a 150 in a Test we lost, made 92 in his only tour match in England (and a century in the practice match against the full Indian Test team) — and still finds himself excluded from the selectors’ frame of reference,” Tharoor wrote on X.

Notably, Sarfaraz Khan, who took 92 against England Lions before the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, continues to face selection hurdles. Despite his progress, he faced disappointment after being excluded from India A’s squad for the two unofficial Tests against South Africa A, scheduled to begin on October 30.

Selectors Urged to Prioritise Domestic Form

Shashi Tharoor also applauded the performances of Ajinkya Rahane, Prithvi Shaw, and Karun Nair, who registered strong knocks in the second round of the Ranji Trophy. The Congress MP Tharoor reiterated that consistent run-scorers in red-ball cricket deserve recognition at the national level.

“I am also very glad to see @ajinkyarahane88, @PrithviShaw and @karun126 making runs in the #RanjiTrophy. Our selectors are too quick to discard proven talent in order to take a punt on “potential”. These are players who have proven themselves over and over again. Runs in domestic cricket must be valued by the selectors, not just the #IPL; otherwise why should anyone bother to play the Ranji?” Tharoor concluded.

This is frankly an outrage. @SarfarazA_54 averages 65-plus in first class cricket, scored a 50 on Test debut and a 150 in a Test we lost, made 92 in his only tour match in England (and a century in the practice match against the full Indian Test team) — and still finds himself… https://t.co/gtq1ni03DQ

— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) October 29, 2025