India is being careful with Mohammed Shami; his return won’t happen till the Tests in New Zealand

Mohammed Shami, who shone at the 2023 World Cup, has not played since November 19, 2023. He was unable to reach the 22-yard line due to an injury to his Achilles tendon, and the pacers had surgery in February. With the Bangladesh series in September, Shami—who is presently undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru—was hoping to make a surprise return.

The BCCI has chosen not to hasten the pacer’s return to action, though. The action follows the five-match Test series that is slated to take place at the tail end of the year against Australia. When the 33-year-old returns, the Indian pace battery—which consists of Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah—will be strengthened even more.

“He needs to fit right into the system because he hasn’t played in a long. We had the T20s in Ireland with Bumrah, so we could progressively raise his effort. However, we are discussing.

Test cricket with Shami, where he must bowl for extended periods of time. The Australia trip is the ultimate goal, and it will be a step-by-step procedure, an insider told Indian Express.

With the Bangladesh Test series seemingly out of the picture, Shami will be hoping for a comeback in October during the Ranji Trophy season. The right-arm bowler will have plenty of playing time throughout the domestic season and should be able to bounce back when India plays New Zealand in a red-ball series. The pacer is likely to fly to Australia with the India A team for two four-day matches at Mackay and Melbourne, beginning on October 31 and November 7, if an international match is not fit by then. In that scenario, he will miss the home three-match series against New Zealand.

Also Read: The use of spin by Indian batters is one of the difficulties I missed: Ryan ten Doeschate

In order to be fresh for the Australia series, Jasprit Bumrah is also anticipated to take a break during the Bangladesh series. After winning the T20 World Cup 2024 final on June 29, the bowler did not play since he was rested for the forthcoming Duleep Trophy season and the white-ball tour to Sri Lanka. In order to support India’s left-arm seam options, the selectors are hoping to add Arshdeep Singh or Khaleel Ahmed for the Bangla series.