Shami attended the team’s first practice at Eden Gardens on Sunday after being selected in India’s squad for the five-match Twenty20 International series against England on January 11.
Mohammed Shami, the star fast bowler, is ready to make his much anticipated return to India. On November 19, 2023, the 34-year-old fast bowler, who finished as the ODI World Cup 2023’s highest wicket-taker, made his final appearance for India. After successfully returning to domestic cricket for Bengal in November of last year, he was included in India’s T20I squad for the forthcoming five-match series against England, despite missing the entire 2024 season with Men in Blue due to an ankle injury.
On Sunday, January 19, Shami, who will spearhead India’s speed assault during the home series, was present for the country’s first practice at Eden Gardens. Shami bowled at full throttle for more than an hour and showed encouraging signals, according to a report in the news agency PTI. The elite pacer, however, reportedly seemed a little uneasy and hobbled back to the locker room. But as soon as possible, he was back on the ground, controlling his tightly strapped left knee as he warily interacted with his former Bengal colleagues.
Under the watchful supervision of bowling coach Morne Morkel, Shami arrived for the practice session wearing heavy strapping on his left knee. The session started with a slow warm-up.
Before taking part in a cautious fielding drill to assess his knee, he bowled for over an hour after first jogging in with small steps.
The experienced bowler reversed the clock with a lengthy run-up and his signature aggressive spells, bowling to young players like Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma in the nets just as questions were beginning to arise about his complete readiness.
With each delivery, Shami’s rhythm got better as he extracted movement and bounce, repeatedly tormenting the batters.However, Shami was put to the test by rookie wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel, who had some bold strokes.
Shami bowled for almost forty-five minutes at full speed despite a demanding practice, without the help of the team’s strength and conditioning coach or physiotherapist.Shami wasn’t finished after the nets.
He proceeded to the nearby length-bowling practice area and had a thorough conversation with Morkel there.
The two worked carefully on hitting particular distances, with Shami demonstrating precise precision by repeatedly hitting the drill’s two set-up stumps.
After that, he joined Hardik Pandya and Harshit Rana for additional practice, sharing knowledge as they went.Jasprit Bumrah’s injury cloud means that Shami’s fitness is essential to India’s ambitions.
