Mohammed Shami bowls at Abhishek Nayar under Morne Morkel's supervision, races against time to be fit for Australia tour

Mohammed Shami bowls at Abhishek Nayar under Morne Morkel's supervision

Mohammed Shami has been out of action since the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup, which was played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The pacer was expected to make a return at the ongoing Test series against New Zealand, however, he is yet to regain full fitness and is undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.

While Shami was already dealing with an ankle injury, for which he underwent a surgery in London earlier this year, a swelling on his knees has compounded his woes. However, the 34-year-old is leaving no stones unturned to regain fitness ahead of the much anticipated India's tour of Australia.

MOHAMMAD SHAMI BOWLING. pic.twitter.com/5DQiB4rU0A

Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) October 20, 2024

After the conclusion of the first India vs New Zealand Test in Bengaluru, which the hosts lost by eight wickets, Shami was seen bowling at Team India's assistant coach Abhishek Nayar. As reported by Sportstar, the pacer bowled for an hour and was closely monitored by bowling coach Morne Morkel, who also had a few words with the pacer. The report mentioned that Shami did manage to generate good bounce and pace but appeared to be in some discomfort during the run-ups. In the videos shared on social media, Shami can be seen using a knee cap while bowling at the assistant coach.

Ahead of the series opener against New Zealand, captain Rohit Sharma had confirmed that Shami's return to the international cricket might get further delayed due to the recent swelling in the knee. Addressing a question on the same, the captain said: "Right now, it is pretty difficult for us to make a call on whether he will be fit for this series or the Australia series."

"He recently had a setback - he had a swelling on his knee, which was quite unusual. He was in the process of getting fit - getting close to 100% - and he had a swelling in his knee. That put him back a little bit in his recovery, so he had to start again fresh."