While all 10 IPL franchises were preparing for the auction, Team India batsman Sarfaraz Khan was wreaking havoc with the bat in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Just before the IPL 2026 auction in Abu Dhabi, he played a stormy inning in the Super Group B match of the tournament against Rajasthan. He scored 73 runs in just 22 balls in this match and played a key role in taking the team to a big score.
Did CSK just hit a jackpot?
During this 73-run innings against Rajasthan, Sarfaraz Khan’s strike rate was 331.82 and during this he hit 7 sixes and 6 fours. Sarfaraz scored a half-century in just 15 balls. This is the fastest fifty of his career. In the previous match, Sarfaraz had scored a fifty in 18 balls but in this match he scored a half-century in just 15 balls.
The benefit of this innings for Sarfaraz was that after remaining unsold in the first round of the IPL auction, he was bought by Chennai Super Kings for Rs 75 lakh in the accelerated round.
Summary of the match
Speaking of the match between Rajasthan and Mumbai, Rajasthan, batting first, set a target of 217 runs for Mumbai. Thanks to Sarfaraz Khan’s explosive innings, Mumbai achieved the massive target with 11 balls to spare. Rahane also played an unbeaten 72 off 41 balls. Ultimately, Mumbai won the match by 3 wickets.
Sarfaraz Khan’s IPL stats
Speaking of Sarfaraz Khan’s IPL career, he has played for Delhi, RCB, and Punjab Kings in the tournament. Sarfaraz has scored 585 runs in 50 IPL matches so far at an average of 22.5. During this period, he has scored only one half-century. While this record isn’t particularly impressive, Sarfaraz has made significant changes to his game in recent years and now appears to be a batsman of a different caliber. Along with his batting, he has also worked on his fitness. He went unsold in the last mega auction.