NEW DELHI: Mohammed Shami will represent Bengal in the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, as announced in the squad released by the Cricket Association of Bengal on Monday.
Following his extended injury break, the Indian fast bowler is preparing for his second consecutive domestic competition, having recently participated in Bengal’s Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh in the fifth round.
During that match, Shami demonstrated his prowess by taking seven wickets, including three top-order batsmen and four lower-order players, across approximately 44 overs. He also contributed significantly with the bat, scoring 36 runs.
His form is a positive sign for Team India, which is heading to Australia with a relatively inexperienced pace attack for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, starting next week in Perth.
Shami’s return to domestic cricket marked an important step in his comeback journey. He had been in sensational form during the ODI World Cup 2023, finishing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 24 wickets in seven matches at an average of 10.70, including three five-wicket hauls.
His best performance came in the semi-final against New Zealand, where he claimed 7/57. However, after India’s heartbreaking loss to Australia in the final, the team redeemed themselves with a T20 World Cup win in the Caribbean, though Shami was forced to watch from the sidelines due to injury.
With his domestic cricket return, Shami will be looking to reclaim his spot in the Indian team ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy and the Indian Premier League in 2025.
If included in the squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Shami’s experience would be invaluable, particularly given India’s inexperienced pace attack. The bowling line-up features Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and promising talents such as Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Akash Deep.
Shami has an impressive Test record in Australia, with 31 wickets in eight matches at an average of 32.16, including best figures of 6/56.
Squad: Sudip Kumar Gharami (C), Abishek Porel (wk), Sudip Chatterjee, Shahbaz Ahmed, Karan Lal, Writtick Chatterjee, Ritwick Roy Chowdhury, Shakir Habib Gandhi (wk), Ranjot Singh Khaira, Prayas Ray Barman, Agniv Pan (wk), Pradipta Pramanik, Saksham Chaudhary, Mohammed Shami, Ishan Porel, Mohammed Kaif, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Sayan Ghosh, Kanishk Seth and Soummyadip Mandal.