“Such a talent has been ignored and neglected” - Dilip Vengsarkar’s brutal comment on Indian batter ahead of IND vs NZ 2026 series

Former Indian skipper Dilip Vengsarkar criticized the team management for consistently omitting the in-form Sarfaraz Khan from the side across all formats. The 28-year-old debuted for India in Tests in the home series against England in 2024.

After impressing in his debut series, Sarfaraz scored his maiden Test century in the home series against New Zealand later in the year. Yet, following a few low scores in the subsequent two Tests, the right-hander has not been in India's Test 11.

Sarfaraz is coming off a brilliant 75-ball 157 for Mumbai in his most recent outing of the ongoing 2025-26 Vijay Hazare Trophy. He has been in phenomenal form in domestic cricket, averaging an incredible 110 at a strike rate of 170.54 in four VHT games.

Talking about Sarfaraz's omission from the Indian side over the past year, Vengsarkar told TOI:

"You know, the thing is, it's really baffing for me that why he's not pick in any format for India, when he has done well so consistently, even for India also when he got an opportunity. Such a talent has been ignored and neglected. It's a real shame! I watched him and (Devdutt) Padikkal batting together against England in Dharamshala (in the fifth and final Test of that series in Jan-Feb 2024). It was a crucial session. They batted beautifully and forged together an important partnership (97 in 132 balls for the fourth wicket), which ultimately helped India win the Test match."

Vengsarkar added:

"And after that (home series against England), he didn't get an opportunity (to play another Test). Of course, he was on the tour of Australia (the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy), but he wasn't given a chance at all. And that really baffles me, because he's a good enough player to play in all formats of the game."

Sarfaraz has played only six Tests for India, scoring 371 runs at an average of 37.10, including a century and three half-centuries.

"If you don't pick match-winners, you can't blame anybody else, but yourself" - Dilip Vengsarkar

Dilip Vengsarkar called Sarfaraz Khan a match-winner and believes India can only blame themselves if they do not include the Mumbai batter in their squads. Before the ongoing VHT, the right-hander enjoyed a phenomenal run in the 2025-26 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), scoring 329 runs at an average of 65.80 and a strike rate of 203.08 in seven matches.

"Basically, he's a match-winner. The beauty of his batting or his mental strength that he can easily adapt to different formats of the game, which is such an important and a great quality of his. I mean, yesterday, Mumbai lost their top-order against Goa, and then he churned out a brilliant knock, which paved the way for Mumbai's win. It was a match-winning innings. And if you don't pick match-winners, you can't blame anybody else, but yourself," said Vengsarkar (via the aforementioned source).

After being unsold over the past two seasons, Sarfaraz will be back in the IPL after the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) signed him for ₹75 Lakhs in the 2026 auction.

Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran