The question of whether Mohammed Shami will return to the Indian cricket team remains unclear after the experienced pace bowler was once again not included in the squad for the upcoming two-match home Test series against South Africa. Shami has not played any international fixture since the end of March this year, and even though he is regularly playing in the Ranji Trophy, the national selectors are still not considering him.
On his part, Shami alleged that the management had not spoken to him, but the team had been ignoring him. Nevertheless, a BCCI source disagrees and insinuates that the veteran pacer is not telling the truth, as reported by PTI.
The official said that the bowler was in contact with the board and the staff who were eagerly waiting for him to be in the Test tour of England with India. They met Shami, "they were desperate for him to be part of India's tour of England in Test cricket," as per the official quoted in the PTI report.
In order to get an idea of the bowler's fitness level for the challenging red-ball cricket, Shami was requested to partake in a match between India A and England Lions during the tour which will be held in either Canterbury or Northampton.
The report adds that “the pacer responded by saying that he still needs to build his workload and shouldn’t be considered for the assignment.”
A senior BCCI official told PTI, “There have been multiple times that national selectors and support staff from the BCCI Centre of Excellence have called to check on Shami. The selection committee was desperate to get his services in England as Jasprit Bumrah could not have played more than three Tests. Who wouldn’t want a bowler of his calibre in English conditions?”
The official further stated, “So the narrative that there was no communication with Shami isn’t an absolute truth. The sports science team also has his medical reports and whether his body will be able to take the rigours of international cricket.”
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