This story is from January 23, 2020

Ranji Trophy: Sarfaraz Khan hits unbeaten triple ton to earn Mumbai first innings lead

For most part of his career, both on and off the field, Sarfaraz Khan has been a victim of perception. On the cricketing front it was believed that Sarfaraz was a white ball cricketer and not cut out for the longer, red ball format. Off the field, his attitude was under scrutiny.
Ranji Trophy: Sarfaraz Khan hits unbeaten triple ton to earn Mumbai first innings lead
Sarfaraz Khan. (TOI Photo)
MUMBAI: For most part of his career, both on and off the field, Sarfaraz Khan has been a victim of perception. On the cricketing front it was believed that Sarfaraz was a white ball cricketer and not cut out for the longer, red ball format. Off the field, his attitude was under scrutiny.
On Wednesday, the final day of Mumbai's Ranji Trophy match against Uttar Pradesh at the Wankhede Stadium, Sarfaraz banished all those notions surrounding him by slamming an unbeaten 301 and helping the hosts surpass Uttar Pradesh's daunting total of 625-8 declared.
When the teams agreed to settle for a draw with just over 15 minutes of play left on the final day, Mumbai had scored 688-7, the desired first innings lead earning them three precious points. With three matches remaining, one of them at home, Mumbai still have a realistic chance of making the knock-outs.
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Sure, Sarfaraz was the central character in Mumbai's mental triumph in this drawn match, but the burly middle-order batsman found valuable support from his teammates throughout the successful chase.
The immediate task for Mumbai on the fourth morning was to see off the new ball, which was only four overs old. Skipper Aditya Tare and Sarfaraz began on an extremely cautious note knowing well that any slip up in the first hour could spell doom for the home team. They left more deliveries than they attempted to play. And once the sun was out nice and bright, and with no juice left in the wicket for the seamers, or turn for the spinners, the pair began to play more confidently. As the innings progressed, both started to play their strokes. There was not a single aerial shot. All the boundaries that came were neatly placed, cricketing strokes.

In fact, Sarfaraz, who had smashed six sixes on his way to a maiden century for Mumbai on Tuesday, added just another two maximums to his overnight tally, one among the two on Wednesday brought up his triple ton. By then, though, Mumbai had already chased down UP's score.
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Skipper Tare, like Siddhesh Lad, missed out on a well deserved century. While Lad edged one to wicket-keeper Upendra Yadav while batting on 98 on Day Three, Tare edged one to the slips, just three shy of his hundred. When Tare departed, Mumbai were still 108 runs adrift of UP's score.
Shams Mulani, who has enjoyed a great run of form this season, was well aware that Mumbai's job had not yet been accomplished. In Mulani, Sarfaraz found a partner, who was capable of effortlessly finding boundaries. The onus of seeing Mumbai through now was not entirely on Sarfaraz's shoulders. Mulani, for his part, scored an 82-ball 65, which included five boundaries and one six. The duo added 150-runs for the eighth wicket when Mulani departed, but by then Mumbai were through.
Though the task at hand was extremely difficult, Sarfaraz always had belief in his ability and the capability of his teammates. Speaking about his knock, Sarfaraz said: "I didn't think I could go all the way (till the end), but I thought it would be good for the team if I was able to take it as deep as I could. There was a time when I was very tired. In fact, during tea time, I thought yaar ab bas ho gaya. Even when I got to 250, I felt it is enough, I should declare (retire), but the team backed me a lot. But after fielding for 600 runs, I thought even they should field for 600 runs," he said.
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