Youngster Sarfaraz Khan has been rolling the charts in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2019-20. In just six matches, he has scored 642 runs and reached the fourth position in leading run-scorers list. The Mumbai batsman made headlines with his triple century against Uttar Pradesh (Jan 22), followed by a double ton against Himanchal Pradesh (Jan 27).
Sarfraz has seen quite a few ups and downs in his career. He burst onto the scene as a 16-year-old talented batsman acquired by the Indian Premier League (IPL) team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). The right-handed batsman played under the captaincy of Virat Kohli for few seasons but soon was shown the exit doors.
Recently, the 22-year-old revealed why RCB released him. Sarfaraz said that he was dropped from the Bengaluru based franchise because of his ‘overweight.’ The Mumbai-born player received an advice from skipper Kohli to take fitness seriously if he wants to excel in professional cricket.
“I was dropped at Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2016 because of my fitness. Virat Kohli told me straightaway while there were no doubts over my skills, my fitness was not letting me get to the next level. He was very honest with me about where I was,” Sarfaraz told ESPNCricinfo.
Sarfaraz is currently a part of the Kings XI Punjab squad in IPL. He also recalled those days when his teammates used to call him ‘panda’ because of his eating habits.
“At one point, all my teammates used to call me ‘panda’ because I used to eat a lot. Now, they’ve started calling me ‘macho.’ Actually, very few people know it’s my nickname now,” added Sarfaraz.
