Ace pacer Mohammad Shami’s desire to be back in India Test team may not materialize as of yet with BCCI likely to drop Shami from the upcoming England Test Tour.
Mohammad Shami wasn’t a part of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia due to injury issues, and his apparent ‘inability to bowl longer spells’ is now set to cost him a place in the Test side for the England tour despite the rich experience he brings to the table.
As per a report in the Indian Express, the BCCI medical team has informed the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee that the pacer isn’t ready to bowl full throttle in a Test match. Hence, the chances of him getting picked for the tour are bleak.
“Shami is bowling four overs in IPL for Sunrisers Hyderabad, but the board and selectors don’t know whether he can bowl more than 10 overs in a day. Test matches in England may demand longer spells from the pacers, and we can’t take chances,” the paper quoted a source as saying.
With Shami being deemed unfit for selection, the report claims that left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh is likely to earn his maiden Test call-up for the series. Haryana right-arm seamer Anshul Kamboj, who has 74 wickets from 22 first-class games, is also one of the candidates to replace Shami in the team. In fact, Kamboj has already been picked for the India A tour of England.
The report further claims that the BCCI selection committee is expected to meet in a few days and announce the squad for the England tour. Shubman Gill remains the No. 1 candidate to replace Rohit Sharma as India’s full-time Test skipper, though there are a few who continue to favour Jasprit Bumrah for the role.