'Door very much open': Rohit on Shami's potential inclusion to India's BGT squad
Dec 08, 2024
Adelaide [Australia], December 8 : Captain Rohit Sharma made an honest admission that the "door is very much open" for Mohammed Shami to join the Indian camp in Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.
From Perth to Adelaide, India saw its momentum soar high and then go down in mud following a 10-wicket defeat in the second Test. Travis Head's explosive strokeplay and "pink ball magician" Mitchell Starc's blitz led to India's downfall.
While Jasprit Bumrah worked his magic in the day-night Test, he was left wanting support from his colleagues Mohammed Siraj and Harshit Rana.
Shami, who has been bidding his time in India's domestic circuit, has shown signs of returning to his best. With the Indian pace unit left exposed in Adelaide, Rohit offered a massive update about the seasoned star's chances of travelling to Australia.
"We are just monitoring him because while playing Syed Mushtaq Ali, he got some swelling in his knee, which hampers his preparation to come and play a Test match. We want to be very careful, we don't want to bring him here, he pulls up sore or something happens," Rohit said in the post-match press conference.
"We want to be more than 100 per cent sure with him because it has been a long time. We don't want to put pressure on him to come here and do the job for the team. There are some professionals monitoring, we will take a call based on what those guys feel. They are the ones watching him every game, how he pulls up after the game, after bowling four overs, standing for 20 overs. But the door is open for him to come and play anytime," he added.
The 34-year-old has made waves since returning to competitive cricket after making his last appearance in the ODI World Cup 2023 final.
He went for ankle surgery and overcame a couple of setbacks to make a return for Bengal in a Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh in November.
Shami's impeccable seam movement and swinging deliveries sent jitters down Madhya Pradesh batters. He returned with match figures of 7/156. Since then, he has made seven appearances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, scything eight wickets in 27.3 overs.
