The Indian cricket team’s chance of a hat-trick of Border-Gavaskar Trophy victories Down Under may have taken a huge hit. Mohammed Shami, India’s best pacer after Jasprit Bumrah, may not be available for the 5-match Test series, which starts on November 22.
Difficult to make a call: Rohit Sharma
Currently rehabbing at the National Cricket Academy (NCA), Rohit Sharma isn’t sure whether Shami will recover from his injury. “To be honest, it is difficult to make a call on Mohammed Shami for the Australia Test series. “He recently had a setback. He had a swelling in his knee, which was quite unusual while he was in the process of getting fit, getting close to 100%. That put him back a little bit in his recovery,” the Indian Test captain said on the eve of the India vs New Zealand 1st Test.
“So he had to start again fresh. Right now, he is at NCA. He is working with the physios and the doctors at NCA. We are keeping our fingers crossed. We want him to be 100% fit. More than anything else, we don’t want to bring an undercooked Shami to Australia. That is not going to be the right decision for us. It is quite tough for a fast bowler having missed so much of cricket. Then suddenly to come out and be at his best, it is not ideal. We want to give him enough time to recover and be 100% fit. The physios, the trainers, and the doctors have set a road map for him. He is supposed to play a couple of games before he plays international cricket. We will see where he is after this New Zealand series. Then take a call at what stage of Australia he will be fit for us,” he added.
Shami’s injury & comeback setbacks
The pacer had battled through pain during the ODI World Cup 2023, and after the tournament finished he’d operated on his left ankle. He was on track for the first few months, but his comeback date has been pushed further and further. Reports had claimed that Shami would be ruled out, but the pacer refuted such claims.
However, Rohit Sharma has revealed that he had a major setback, and they aren’t sure he’ll be available for the India vs Australia series. He’d suffered inflammation in his knees during his rehab and hasn’t been able to play any competitive cricket in nearly 11 months. Rohit’s aware that bringing him early could hamper Shami and Team India.
No Ranji for Shami
What’s worrisome is that Shami hasn’t been included in Bengal’s Ranji Trophy 2024-25 squad. He was expected to play their opener against Uttar Pradesh, but as Rohit mentioned, the setback has delayed his comeback. He hasn’t been included in Bengal’s second match against Bihar, and with India leaving for Australia in the second week of November, at best, Shami can play two first-class games. If he plays, there might be a chance he travels Down Under.
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