Champions Trophy 2025: No fitness issues with Mohammed Shami and Rohit Sharma, confirms Shreyas Iyer

Mohammed Shami being attended by the physio during the India vs Pakistan match in ICC Champions Trophy in Dubai

The second ball that Mohammed Shami bowled in the India versus Pakistan Champions Trophy game on Sunday went way down the leg side. KL Rahul made a brilliant stop behind the stumps, diving to his right. A couple of balls later, Shami bowled another leg-side wide. When the fast bowler completed his first over, he had bowled 11 deliveries, including five wides. It was a case of the radar going AWOL.

Shami’s second over was better, but he was still searching for rhythm. Something didn't feel right. And as he was bowling his third, he looked to be in some discomfort. The Indian team physio came into the ground and tended to Shami's right ankle and calf. The bowler was good to go for the time being, but soon he would leave the field. It felt like a déjà vu moment.

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Shami is on the wrong side of thirty and carries a dubious injury record. He is a strong character, someone who played the entire 2023 World Cup through pain and still made telling contributions. The ankle was hurting him. After the tournament, he went under the surgeon’s knife and an elongated period on the sidelines ensued. He only came back to competitive cricket in November last year and had to wait for another couple of months to return to the Indian team fold.

In fact, at the post-match press conference in Ahmedabad, after India's 3-0 ODI clean-sweep of England, head coach Gautam Gambhir had spoken about how the team was mindful of managing Shami's workload during the series.

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In Jasprit Bumrah’s absence, the 34-year-old is the leader of India's pace pack in the ongoing Champions Trophy. He started off with a five-for against Bangladesh. So, when he left the field on Sunday, alarm bells rang. Thankfully, Shami returned to take part in the proceedings and bowled eight overs.

A little after Shami’s exit, Rohit Sharma, too, left the field, temporarily handing over the captaincy to Shubman Gill. The skipper, though, was back soon.

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India chose Shreyas Iyer for the post-match press conference duty, on the heels of his 56 off 67 balls and a match-winning 114-run third wicket partnership with Virat Kohli. The middle-order batsman was asked about Shami and Rohit’s fitness. He allayed fears.

“Not really to be looking at them (Shami and Rohit),” said Shreyas. “I mean I had a brief chat with them. Both of them were quite comfortable with the way things progressed. And yeah, from my knowledge, I don't think there's any issue.”