the veteran Indian National Cricket Team Right-arm pacer Mohammed Shami has been facing problems with his ankle and has become a major cause of concern for the team management and the BCCI ahead of the South Africa tour.
India recently wrapped up their five-match home T20I series against Australia and will then travel to South Africa for an all-format tour. The tour will begin with a three-match T20I series to be played on December 10, 12 and 14 in Durban, Gqeberha and Johannesburg.
The teams will then face each other in a three-match ODI series to be played on December 17, 19 and 21 in Johannesburg, Gqeberha and Paarl. The Men in Blue and the Proteas will then play two test matches to conclude the series with the first test starting on December 26 in Centurion. The second and final test will be held from January 3 in Cape Town.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has already announced the teams for the tour. Rohit Sharma will lead the team in Test cricket, while KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav have taken leadership responsibility for the ODIs and T20Is.
One of the big talking points to come out of the team’s announcement was the question mark over Mohammed Shami’s availability. The BCCI included him in the Test squad, but his availability was subject to his physical condition.
“Mr. Mohd. Shami is currently undergoing medical treatment and his availability is subject to his physical condition,” the BCCI said while announcing the call-up on November 30.
Mohammed Shami suffering from ankle discomfort since World Cup: reports
According to a Cricbuzz report, Mohammed Shami has been dealing with an ankle problem, a concern that has lingered since the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.
Despite suffering from ankle discomfort while bowling, Mohammed Shami put in an absolutely stupendous performance in the competition.
Mohammed Shami was not India’s first-choice pacer but an injury to all-rounder Hardik Pandya paved the way for his inclusion in the playing XI. After entering the team, the pacer put up consecutive exceptional performances and destroyed rival teams.
He finished the competition as the leading wicket-taker with 24 wickets in 7 matches and best bowling figures of 7/57. He picked up his wickets at an average of 10.70, an economy of 5.26 and a strike rate of 12.20.
Returning to the South Africa tour, Team India will depart for Durban via Dubai from Bengaluru in the early hours of Wednesday, December 6. India head coach Rahul Dravid will fly out with the T20I team on the same day.
Indian team for trials: 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, Mohd. Shami*, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna.
India Team for 3 T20Is: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (C), Rinku Singh, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan (wk), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Ravindra Jadeja (VC), Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav ., Arshdeep Singh, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Deepak Chahar.
India team for 3 ODIs: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sai Sudharsan, Tilak Varma, Rajat Patidar, Rinku Singh, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (C)(wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan , Arshdeep Singh, Deepak Chahar.
