Mohammed Shami, who hasn’t played any competitive cricket since the 50-over World Cup final last November, is expected to play two matches for Bengal in the ongoing Ranji Trophy before travelling to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
The Bengal team management is hopeful that the 34-year-old will turn up in their two away fixtures in Round 3 and 4, respectively. Shami is likely to join the Bengal team in Bengaluru ahead of their match against Karnataka, starting from November 6. The speedster is also tipped to play in the next match in Indore against Madhya Pradesh.
“He is not available for this match (vs Kerala), but we are hopeful that Shami will join us for games against Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh,” Bengal coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla told The Indian Express.
“He is a valuable player for India and the team his service will be required for the Australia series. Recently, he mentioned how keen he is about playing a couple of Ranji games for Bengal before travelling to Australia. Good outings in the Ranji Trophy will be good for him ahead of the Australia tour and will be a big boost for us our four key players are playing for India and India A,” said Shukla.
Indian bowler Mohammed Shami is expected to play a couple of Ranji Trophy matches for Bengal. (FILE photo)
With Shami set to play two Ranji Trophy matches, the speedster will not travel with the Indian team, who are scheduled to leave for the Australian shores a couple of days after the end of the third Test against New Zealand in Mumbai.
Following his heroics in the 2023 ODI World Cup, where he snared 24 wickets at an average of 10.70, Shami underwent surgery in London in February. He was tipped to make a comeback for the Test series at home against Bangladesh and New Zealand. However, he suffered another setback through a swollen knee, which delayed his return.
Speaking ahead of the Bengaluru Test, captain Rohit Sharma had stated that he didn’t want an undercooked Shami in Australia. “We are keeping our fingers crossed. We want him to be fit; we want him to be 100 per cent. More than anything else, we don’t want to bring an undercooked Shami to Australia,” Rohit had said.
Shami had played a crucial role in India’s first-ever Test series win in Australia in 2018-19, when he bagged 16 wickets in four matches. However, he had played just the first Test, in Adelaide, when India toured next in 2020-21 before he returned home with an injury.
