If things go to plan, Mohammed Shami would be on the flight to Australia. The fast bowler had an hour-long bowling session at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Sunday following which he exuded confidence about being ready for India’s tour Down Under. The first Test of the five-match series starts in Perth from November 22.
“I am pain free now,” Shami told reporters during an event on Monday. “Felt really good in the full-intensity bowling session in Bengaluru yesterday. I want to make sure that I go to Australia with enough bowling under my belt. For that, (I am) targeting one or two games in the Ranji Trophy.”
After the first Test between India and New Zealand was over, Shami had a bowling session at the Chinnaswamy Stadium nets. Although his left knee was heavily strapped, he went full tilt at Shubman Gill and India’s assistant coach Abhishek Nayar.
As Rohit Sharma said, the team doesn’t want Shami to go to Australia undercooked. It now needs to be seen if the 34-year-old turns up for Bengal’s next Ranji Trophy match, against Kerala at Eden Gardens from October 26.
Shami hasn’t played any international cricket since the 50-over World Cup final against Australia last year. He underwent a successful Achilles tendon surgery earlier this year and his rehab at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) was well on course until he suffered a swollen knee. In fact, Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Snehasish Ganguly had earlier informed RevSportz that Shami planned to play Bengal’s first two Ranji matches of the season, against Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. But the knee injury put paid to that plan.
Ahead of the first Test against New Zealand, Rohit spoke about Shami, saying: “He has not played any cricket for over a year. It is quite tough for a fast bowler to have missed so much of cricket, and then suddenly to come out and be at his best. It is not ideal. We will want to give him enough time to recover and be 100 per cent fit.”
But now that Shami is expected to return to competitive cricket soon, it’s a big boost for the Indian team ahead of the marquee series.
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