India’s ever-reliable pacer Mohammed Shami is all set to return to the national colors after more than a year. He is currently preparing for the upcoming white ball series against England at home. On Saturday, January 18, Shami was named in India’s 15-member squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Following Mohammed Shami’s inclusion in the 15-man squad for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Indian captain Rohit Sharma has described the experienced pacer as “solid white-ball cricket” while hailing his resilience, class and comeback story.
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Notably, Shami was sidelined for almost a year due to an ankle injury with his last appearance for Team India being in the 2023 ODI World Cup final against Australia in Ahmedabad on 19 November.
The star paceman underwent surgery last year and then during his recovery, he experienced slight swelling in his left knee, ruling him out of the New Zealand Tests and Australia tour.
However, after a long recovery, Shami finally made his competitive comeback with Bengal in the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy, followed by the 2024-25 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The experienced pacer also played in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25 and showed good form with the ball.
Mohammed Shami is a white-ball cricket fanatic: Rohit Sharma
Before the debacle, Mohammed Shami was instrumental in India reaching the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup and his performance, especially in high-pressure moments, left a lasting impression on Indian captain Rohit Sharma, who heaped praise on him. at its premiere.
After announcing the ODI squad for the England series and announcing the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 squad on Saturday, Rohit Sharma praised Shami’s performance in the ODI World Cup 2023 and said it was simply great to watch while hailing him as a key advantage for Indian cricket team.
Rohit Sharma said at the press conference in Mumbai on Saturday, “Shammy is a white ball cricket enthusiast. What he did recently in the World Cup was great to see… If you talk about everyone, you can’t please everyone. So at the end of the day, you’re trying to build the best team and the best possible team to win games under different situations.”
I don’t think Mohammed Shami’s fitness had anything to do with white ball cricket anyway: Ajit Agarkar
Meanwhile, India’s chief selector Ajit Agarkar revealed that they tried hard to get Shami’s services for the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy but his knee did not allow him to play four- or five-day cricket. Agarkar is confident that there will be no problem with Shami’s fitness in white-ball cricket.
Ajit Agarkar told the presser: “I don’t think his fitness had anything to do with white-ball cricket anyway. I think he has played most of the Syed Mushtaq Ali games and some of the Vijay Hazare games. With the uncertainty around Jassi (Bumrah) as well, if he (Shami) is fit and playing regularly, the quality and experience he brings is invaluable. We hope he gets through the white-ball games against England and by the time the Champions Trophy comes around, he’ll be 100 per cent.”
