 "Mohammed Shami was included in the Suryakumar Yadav-led India squad for the T20I series against England while Rishabh Pant was overlooked in favour of Sanju Samson. Reuters/AP")
After remaining on the sidelines for more than a year without playing any form of competitive cricket for the better part of this time period, Mohammed Shami appears set for his much-awaited return to the Indian cricket team. The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee unveiled India’s squad for the five-match T20I series against England on Saturday while keeping those for the three-match ODI series against the same team as well as for the ICC Champions Trophy on hold.
Among the players included in the Suryakumar Yadav-led squad was the senior pacer who has not represented the Men in Blue since the 2023 ICC World Cup, the tournament that he had set alight and finished the leading wicket-taker in.
The 34-year-old had suffered an ankle injury during the tournament and had undergone a surgery later in February. A swollen knee during his rehabilitation at Bengaluru’s National Cricket Academy (NCA) forced him to miss India’s tour of Australia .
However, after representing Bengal in a series of domestic fixtures across formats, the VVS Laxman-led NCA has finally given the selectors the go-ahead to pick him for the Men in Blue’s white-ball assignments after the Australia tour.
Shami, naturally, became the talk of the town after his inclusion in India’s squad. Here’s how netizens reacted to his return:
Impact Shorts
View AllShami’s return, however, wasn’t the only talking point as far as India’s T20I squad was concerned. The selectors also chose to overlook Rishabh Pant for the shortest format and stuck with Sanju Samson as their primary wicketkeeper-batter and opening option while including Dhruv Jurel as his back-up.
The T20I series between India and England will get underway on 22 January in Kolkata, with the final match taking place in Mumbai on 2 February.
BCCI, meanwhile, is expected to unveil India’s squad for the England ODIs, which take place between 6 and 12 February, as well as for the ICC Champions Trophy on 18 or 19 January, according to reports.