Will Mohammed Shami return to Team India?Image Credit source: PTI
The Indian team is going to face New Zealand in the first international series of the new year. Just before the T20 World Cup, the Kiwi team is coming to India tour and it is starting from January 11. First of all, the ODI series will be played between the two teams and for this the Indian team is going to be announced on Saturday, January 3. Looking at the current circumstances, this series and this announcement do not have much importance but for some players this can be the decision of their future and there is a big name in it – Mohammed Shami. Is Shami finally going to make a comeback in Team India?
On Saturday, the selection committee headed by Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar will choose the squad for the 3-match ODI series in an online meeting, which will be announced later. BCCI Will be done on social media and website. Some important news related to this series has already come out, in which Rishabh Pant seems certain to be dropped, while Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah will be given rest, so that they remain fit for the T20 series and World Cup.
Shami has proved Agarkar wrong
But amidst all this, speculations are also being made about the return of Mohammed Shami. Mohammed Shami has been out of Team India since the Champions Trophy last year. During this period, his fitness and form were constantly under question and due to this, he had a verbal war with Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar, where both of them made allegations against each other. While Agarkar kept raising questions on Shami’s fitness, Shami also kept answering them by continuously playing domestic cricket.
However, even after this Shami could not be selected but this time the situation seems to be in his favor. The reason for this is Shami being continuously active in domestic cricket in the last 3-4 months and performing strongly. Shami took 20 wickets in 7 innings in the first round of Ranji Trophy matches with an excellent average of 18.60. Then in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, he took 16 wickets in 7 innings. In this he proved to be a bit expensive but still looked in rhythm. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he has so far taken 8 wickets in 4 innings for Bengal and has looked effective.
Why should Shami be selected?
Overall, Shami took full responsibility from his side and proved it not only through fitness but also through form. In such a situation, Agarkar and Company have no reason to ignore Shami in terms of performance. But apart from this, there is another reason which can be helpful for Shami. Team India has to play T20 series and then T20 World Cup immediately after this series. In such a situation, the selectors have a chance to give rest to fast bowlers like Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana from this series, so that they remain fit for the World Cup. In this situation, by choosing Shami, Agarkar has a chance to remove his grievances and give his rightful due to an Indian legend.