Mohammed Shami’s fitness is still a concern, as his return might get even delayed, as the issues are persisting. Test captain Rohit Sharma has confirmed that Shami is suffering from swelling in his knees and will be available only subject to his availability for the tour of Australia.
Actually, it’s tough to make a call on him for the Australia series. He had a setback and swelling in his knees. That put him back a little bit, and he has to restart his recovery process. He’s at the NCA with doctors and physios,” said Rohit.
He further said, “We want him to be 100% fit. We don’t want to bring an undercooked Shami to Australia; it wouldn’t be the right decision. For a fast bowler, missing such a lot of cricket and then coming back is tough, and we don’t want to rush him.”
Rohit confirmed that the medical team had prepared a rehabilitation plan for Shami. “He is supposed to play a few practice matches before he makes the international comeback, said he.
The last time Shami played was during the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup, where he played despite an ankle injury on which he resorted to injections. The two key tournaments he missed were the South Africa tour and IPL 2024 and T20 World Cup.
With Shami out of the team, Akash Deep made his Test debut and stepped into big shoes alongside Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj in the pace attack.