Mohammed Shami last played a Test for India in the WTC final against Australia in 2023. (Reuters)
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri expressed concerns over India’s pace bowling attack and admitted that the side will only be boosted by Mohammed Shami’s return to the squad for the remainder of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Australia.
In Shami’s absence, the onus of shepherding the seam attack has fallen on Jasprit Bumrah, who led India to victory in the first Test in Perth by 295 runs with an eight-wicket haul.
However, India’s pace-bowling attack barring Bumrah has remained largely flat in the Pink-Ball Test in Adelaide, with seamer Harshit Rana bearing the brunt of a Travis Head onslaught. At the time of writing, Rana had conceded 86 runs in 16 overs during which Australia zoomed past India’s first-innings score of 180 with Head slamming his third Pink-Ball Test hundred.
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“The quicker he (Shami) reaches here, the better,” Ravi Shastri told while commentating on Star Sports.
Shastri also observed that India’s pace attack is heavily reliant on Bumrah’s performance. “He is playing a lot of domestic matches. You can see the pressure when Bumrah is bowling and others are bowling. There is a lot of pressure on Bumrah,” Shastri added.
After India picked up only one wicket on Friday evening, Bumrah returned to snap up quick wickets on Day 2, including Steve Smith and Nathan McSweeney in the first session.
Shami, who last featured in a Test during India’s World Test Championship final defeat to Australia in June 2023, has made a successful comeback after a year’s break due to a knee injury. The 34-year-old spearheaded the Bengal pace attack in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament, picking up 8 wickets in seven games at a 7.67 economy to reach the knockouts.
Shami also played in a Ranji Trophy match and led Bengal to a thrilling win over Madhya Pradesh with a seven-wicket match haul.
Shastri, however, said it is likely that Shami will rejoin the squad in time for the next Test that begins in Brisbane on December 14. The fourth and fifth Tests of the series will be played in Melborune and Sydney between December 26 and January 7.
“I think Brisbane might be a little too early, maybe Melbourne and Sydney,” remarked Shami.
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