India pacer Mohammed Shami will not be rushed to Australia during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The selectors want to be 100% sure that his body can endure the rigours of a five-day game, where he might need to take up a lot of workload. The marquee event begins on November 22 in Perth, and Shami will not start in the first Test.
Those privy to developments told PTI that the BCCI medical team and national selectors want Shami to play more competitive matches in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy to check if his body is holding up after multiple games.
Shami picked seven wickets in Bengal's Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh last week. There were expectations that he might fly to Australia ahead of the second Test, a pink-ball game in Adelaide. It was Bengal's first win of the season and Shami played a crucial role.
Another crucial spell 👌After his excellent spell in the 1st innings, @MdShami11 again impressed in the 2nd innings with a vital spell of 3/102 to help Bengal win a thriller against Madhya Pradesh 🙌Watch 🎥 his 3 wickets in the 2nd innings 🔽#RanjiTrophy | @IDFCFIRSTBankpic.twitter.com/2da2R4td7F
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) November 16, 2024
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“Bengal team for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy will be selected tomorrow (November 18). If Shami is not going for the Border Gavaskar Trophy, I believe he will be available for Bengal,” head coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla told PTI.
The report further adds that the selection committee led by former India cricketer Ajit Agarkar does not want to take chances by pushing Shami after only one Ranji Trophy game, coming on the back of a lengthy rehab.
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With Shami not available for the first Test, pacers Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana have a unique opportunity at hand, to be third pacer behind Bumrah and Siraj. Harshit, who is just 10 first-class games old, has been brilliant with his consistent pace of over 140 clicks, according to reports.
On the other hand, India's bowling coach Morne Morkel spent considerable time with Prasidh, who was impressive during the recent A series against Australia at Mackay and Melbourne.