Srinagar: Team India skipper Rohit Sharma has made it clear that he will not be taking injured pacer Mohammad Shami to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Test series unless the oacer is fully fit.
Rohit was asked about the rehabilitation status of pacer Mohammed Shami, all but confirmed that the pacer would not be travelling with the team to Australia for the 5-match Border-Gavaskar Test series.
Shami has been away from cricketing duties since the 2023 ODI World Cup. On multiple occasions, the veteran pacer was touted to make his return but only encountered roadblocks.
“To be honest, it is difficult to make a call on him for the Australia series. He had a setback and had swelling in his knees. That put him back a little bit and had to start again. He’s at the NCA with doctors and physios. We don’t want to bring undercooked Shami to Australia. We are keeping our fingers crossed,” Rohit said.
“He was in the process of getting fit, getting close to 100 per cent, he had swelling in his knee, that put him back a little bit in his recovery. So, he had to start again. Right now, he’s at NCA, he’s working with the physios and the doctors at NCA,” he added.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed, we want him to be 100 per cent fit. We don’t want to bring an undercooked Shami to Australia, that is not going to be the right decision for us.
“It is quite tough for a fast bowler, having missed so much of cricket, and then suddenly to come out and be at his best, it is not ideal,” he noted.
The National Cricket Academy staff are working continuously with Shami and the pacer is also expected to play a few internal matches to prove his fitness.
“We want to give him enough time to recover and be 100 percent fit. The physios, the trainers, the doctors have set a roadmap for him.
“He is supposed to play a couple of (practice) games before he plays international cricket,” he added.