"We don't want to bring undercooked Shami to Australia" - Rohit Sharma issues a crucial update on the recovering pacer
Team India skipper Rohit Sharma has claimed that Mohammed Shami could miss out on the Australia tour if he does not regain full fitness in time. The pacer has been struggling with injuries since the 2023 ODI World Cup and has reportedly suffered a setback in his recovery, complicating his presence for the crucial Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Shami was expected to recover ahead of the Indian domestic season, allowing him to potentially regain match fitness through the Duleep Trophy and the Ranji Trophy before making it back to the Indian team. However, he did not play the domestic season curtain raiser and is not part of the Bengal squad for their first two matches.
Shami had recently refuted rumors of a potential setback, but Rohit Sharma confirmed that the bowler is currently with physios at the National Cricket Academy (NCA).
"To be honest, it is difficult to make a call on him for Australia series. He had a setback and had swelling in his knees. That put him back a little bit and had to start again. He's at the NCA with doctors and physios. We don't want to bring undercooked Shami to Australia. We are keeping our fingers crossed," Rohit Sharma said ahead of the first Test against New Zealand (via RevSportz Global).
A broken arm during the first Test in Adelaide had ruled Shami out of the remainder of India's previous tour of Australia in 2020-21.
Shami has not played a single match for India in the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. His last red-ball appearance came during the finals of the previous cycle against Australia at The Oval in June 2023.
"He is always there when it comes to talking with the bowling group" - Rohit Sharma on Jasprit Bumrah's leadership ability
The recent squad announcement for the New Zealand Test series had a minor update, with Jasprit Bumrah being named as the vice-captain. This could be an important development as Rohit Sharma could reportedly miss the initial phase of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under due to personal reasons.
"He's one of the experienced players in the team. He has not captained a lot but whatever I have discussed with him, he is always there when it comes to talking with the bowling group, bowlers, or even for something during the match. It's good to have him around," Rohit Sharma said in the same press conference (via RevSportz Global).
Newcomer Akash Deep had spoken highly of Bumrah's guidance on and off the field during the recent Test series against Bangladesh. Bumrah has even led India on one occasion, during the rescheduled fifth Test against England in 2022, when Rohit was ruled out due to COVID-19.