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India’s ever-reliable pacer Mohammad Shami is set to return to the national service 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-man squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
After Mohammad Shami was named in the 15-man squad for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025, India captain Rohit Sharma termed the veteran pacer “the backbone of white-ball cricket” ” while praising his toughness, level and comeback story.
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Notably, Shami was out for almost a year due to an ankle injury and his last appearance for India was against Australia in the 2023 ODI World Cup final in Ahmedabad on November 19.
The star pacer underwent surgery last year and during the recovery process suffered minor swelling in his left knee, which ruled him out of the New Zealand Tests and Australia tour.
However, after a long recovery, Shami finally returned to action with Bangladesh in the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy and later in the 2024-25 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The veteran pacer is also part of the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25 and has shown good form with the ball.
Mohammad Shami a staunch supporter of white-ball cricket: Rohit Sharma
Before the setback, Mohammad Shami played a key role in India’s run to the 2023 ODI World Cup final and his performance, especially in high-pressure moments, impressed India captain Rohit Sharma. , who spoke highly of him as his chief bowler.
After the ODI squad for the England series and 2025 ICC Champions Trophy was announced on Saturday, Rohit Sharma praised Shami’s performance for the 2023 ODI World Cup and said it was very exciting to watch. Wonderful while praising him as a great asset to the Indian cricket team.
Addressing a press conference in Mumbai on Saturday, Rohit Sharma said: “Shami is a staunch supporter of white-ball cricket. His recent performance in the World Cup has been great to watch…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 lineup to win in different situations.”
Anyway, I don’t think Mohammad Shami’s fitness has anything to do with white-ball cricket: Ajit Agarkar
Meanwhile, India chief selector Ajit Agarkar revealed that they worked hard to get Shami for the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy but his knee did not allow him to play four-day or five-day cricket Contest. Agarkar is confident that Shami will not have any issues with his fitness in white-ball cricket.
Ajit Agarkar told a press conference: “In any case, I don’t think his fitness has anything to do with white-ball cricket. I think he has played most of Syed Mushtaq Ali’s Matches and some matches with Vijay Hazare because of Jassy (Buddha). There is uncertainty as well, and if he (Shami) is fit and playing regularly, the quality and experience he brings will be invaluable and we hope he can survive the white-ball games against England when the trophy comes. By the time he arrived, he was 100 percent recovered.”
