"He has performed well, his IPL numbers are great" - Aakash Chopra questions Mohammad Shami's omission from India's Asia Cup squad

The pacer last played a T20I in the 2021 T20 World Cup. (Credits: Twitter)

Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra wasn't impressed by Mohammad Shami's exclusion from the Asia Cup squad. The former India batter also said that the right-arm seamer is deserving of a spot over Avesh Khan.

The BCCI announced a 15-man squad on Monday (August 8) for the upcoming edition of the Asia Cup, which starts on August 27 in the UAE. However, the selectors omitted the experienced bowler from the squad and picked Arshdeep Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Avesh Khan in the squad.

🚨#TeamIndia squad for Asia Cup 2022 - Rohit Sharma (Capt ), KL Rahul (VC), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, R Pant (wk), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, R Jadeja, R Ashwin, Y Chahal, R Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan.

Notes -
Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel were not available for selection owing to injuries. They are currently undergoing rehab at the NCA in Bengaluru.

Three players - Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel and Deepak Chahar have been named as standbys.

Speaking on Hotstar (via India Today) about the squad selection, Chopra questioned the 31-year-old's omission, stressing that his IPL numbers are great and that he deserves a spot over Avesh Khan. Chopra stated:

"Why everybody has forgotten about Mohammad Shami is beyond me. He has performed well, his IPL numbers are great.

"I think if it was a race between Avesh Khan and Mohammad Shami, I will go with Mohammed Shami with my eyes closed. Nothing against Avesh, but I feel that Shami should have been given a chance with the new ball in the absence of a Jasprit Bumrah."

A significant blow for the men in blue came in the form of Jasprit Bumrah, whose back injury ruled him out of the tournament. Bumrah, who made his T20I debut in 2016, is the third-highest wicket-taker for India in the format with 69 scalps from 58 games at 19.46.

India, the defending champions, will take on arch-rivals Pakistan in the second match of the competition on August 28 in Dubai to open their campaign. The multi-nation tournament starts with Afghanistan facing Sri Lanka in Dubai on August 27.

Rohit Sharma and Co. have been in rampant form since their group-stage exit from the 2021 T20 World Cup, winning five of their last six bilateral T20 series. The 2007 T20 World Cup champions won the five-game T20 series against the West Indies 4-1.

Mohammed Shami has not played a T20I since November 2021

England v India - 2nd Royal London Series One Day International

The Bengal bowler last played a T20 international in the 2021 T20 World Cup against Namibia in Dubai. The right-arm seamer has been out of favor despite a strong IPL season for the Gujarat Titans this year.

He finished the edition with 20 wickets in 16 games at 24.40 as the Titans lifted the trophy in their first season. Shami has 18 scalps in 17 T20Is at 31.55, having made his first appearance against Pakistan in Mirpur in 2014.

Nevertheless, he remains part of the plans for India's ODI setup. The right-arm seamer snared four wickets in the three-match ODI series against England recently, including a spell of 7-0-31-3 at the Oval to bowl the hosts out for 110.