As India gears up for their tour to South Africa, there’s a sense of unease among the team management due to the ankle injury of Mohammed Shami.
Mohammed Shami, who emerged as the leading wicket-taker in the recently concluded ODI World Cup with 24 wickets, is presently recovering from an ankle injury. Unfortunately, he wasn’t included in the lineup for the three T20Is and three ODIs in South Africa. However, there’s a chance for him to feature in the Test squad, contingent on successfully clearing the fitness test. According to reports, even if Shami had been fit, he might not have been considered for the shorter formats.
However, for the coming South Africa tour, the 33-year-old is still under strict monitoring and hasn’t gained approval to make his comeback.
Shami has been named only for the Test team, with a purposeful rest for the white-ball series, covering a three-match T20I and ODI series. Additionally, he’s part of the group engaging in a three-day warm-up game before the initial Test on Boxing Day (December 26) at Centurion.
Conversely, the T20I side, headed by Suryakumar Yadav, is set to fly for South Africa early on Wednesday (December 6). Head coach Rahul Dravid and the support staff will accompany the team, given that the first T20I is slated for December 10. According to sources, the Indian cricketers will travel from Bengaluru to Dubai and then go to South Africa.
In the case that Shami doesn’t make it to the red-ball series, the probable combo would be Prasidh Krishna with Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah. Shardul Thakur, meanwhile, remains a fourth pace option, and it appears likely that the team captained by Rohit Sharma will opt for four pacers alongside either Ravindra Jadeja or Ravichandran Ashwin. Mukesh Kumar is also accompanying the Test side, and it will be exciting to witness how the squad utilizes him during the series.
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Having exhibited a good track record on the domestic circuit, Mukesh Kumar, a 30-year-old pacer, has only played one Test match so far, against West Indies earlier in the year, where he secured two wickets. Recently, Ashwin named him the future Shami of Indian cricket. Consequently, it remains to be seen how the team management incorporates him into the two-match series.
Team India Test Squad For The South Africa Series:
Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan (wk), KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Mohammed Shami*, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna.
