Mohammed Shami has resumed bowling after six months. The pacer provided an update on his fitness on June 20, sharing his training sessions at the National Cricket Academy (NCA). Working to get back to cricket under the head of sports science and medicine, Dr. Nitin Patel, and strength and conditioning coach Rajinikanth, Shami has been making progress.
Mohammed Shami starts bowling
Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah, and Shreyas Iyer have all undergone rehabilitation successfully at the NCA in the last year or so. Having been out of action since the ODI World Cup, it’s expected that he’ll be eased slowly to avoid any chances of aggravating his injury and delaying his comeback.
The right-arm pacer’s childhood coach, Badruddin Siddique, has confirmed that he’s started to bowl but isn’t going full throttle at the moment. “Shami has started bowling. Not with a full run-up or full tilt, but has started releasing the ball without any discomfort in the nets. This is a good sign because bowling activity has begun,” Badruddin told News18.
Shami to return to cricket in India vs Bangladesh series
BCCI Secretary Jay Shah had already revealed the plan to bring back Mohammed Shami in September. Having not played a match since November 19, Shami’s set to don the Indian jersey against Bangladesh. “Shami’s return is likely for the home series against Bangladesh.” Shah had said it in March.
Border-Gavaskar Trophy in mind
Having undergone an Achilles tendon surgery in February, it’s expected that Shami will be eased into international cricket. Instead of rushing him early, in a white-ball series, BCCI is expected to be extremely cautious. With India set to tour Australia for a 5-match Test series in November, having him will be essential for Team India’s success down under.
“There is a very important away tour of Australia this year where India play five Tests. Mohammed Shami is going to be a very crucial player for the side during that assignment, and a very cautious approach is going to be followed.”
“It is always better to ease a player back into competitive cricket, especially for a fast bowler. Again, that’s a safety-first plan, but you never know. If he bowls without discomfort for an extended period in the nets and participates in match simulations without any trouble, Bangladesh Tests could well be the series of his return,” a source told News18.
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