Not India! Mohammed Shami to play for this team upon his return from injury
Published - 03 Aug 2024, 04:54 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 01:16 AM
India fast bowler Mohammed Shami is set to play domestic cricket before making his much-awaited international comeback for Team India. Shami is currently out of the national team due to a surgery on his Achilles Tendon that he had a few months ago.
His last professional match was the ODI World Cup 2023 final against Australia, which India lost. After the World Cup, he went on a break to heal his ankle injury. In the month of February, he underwent a successful surgery but it also ruled him of the upcoming IPL season and the T20 World Cup 2024.
The fast bowler was earlier expected to make a comeback into the national team in the home Test series against Bangladesh, which will begin on September 19. But the 33-year-old will now have to prove his fitness before coming back into the national team.
Mohammed Shami to play domestic cricket ahead of his India comeback
Shami is currently working his way back into full fitness and is expected to be available for the upcoming Duleep Trophy which will be played from September 5 to September 22. He has already started bowling in the nets at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.
During his felicitation ceremony in Kolkata by the East Bengal Club, Shami opened up on his potential international comeback. He stated that he would play a few domestic games in Bengal colors before being fully prepared for an India comeback. He will be part of East Zone in the Duleep Trophy if he is available for participation.
"It's difficult to say when I will be back. I am trying hard, but hopefully you will get to see me in Bengal colors before I don the India jersey again. I will come to play two-three matches for Bengal and will come fully prepared for it," said Shami.
BCCI's stance on Indian players trying to make an international comeback
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been strict in its stance that Indian international players need to play domestic cricket in order to make a comeback into the national side. A recent example is of wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan, who took a break due to mental fatigue at the end of 2023.
Kishan was asked by the selectors to play domestic matches in order to be selected for the Indian team. But Kishan prioritized IPL above domestic cricket and the board removed him from the BCCI's annual central contracts list.
Mohammed Shami suffered a knee injury during the World Cup last year but kept playing the tournament. But when the situation turned out to be worse than expected, he was recommended to take action immediately.
"We never thought the injury would be this serious. The plan was to address it after the T20 World Cup since we had the IPL and the ICC T20 mega event coming almost back-to-back after last year's World Cup," Shami said during his felicitation.
"But it turned worse during the ODI World Cup itself and I also did not find it right to risk playing on with it. Even the doctors could not fathom that the injury will take such a serious turn and will take so much time to heal," he added.
