Mohammed Shami was excluded from the 18-member Test side that was named by the BCCI selectors led by Ajit Agarkar via a press meet on Saturday, May 24.
Shami has had injury concerns in the past with his knees and has not performed well so far in IPL 2025 as well. Due to his injury concerns, he was snubbed from the Indian Test side named for England series.
Shami's international return happened in January 2025. Prior to that, he missed the Test series against Australia. He played the Champions Trophy where India had a victorious campaign and Shami was a part of the team. However, so far in this IPL season, he has not looked at his best. He has not played many games either.
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However, the senior Indian pacer who has picked 42 wickets in England in Test matches is raring to make a comeback in the Test side amid questions on his fitness and form. He has not played Test cricket for 23 months with his last Test being in the series against Australia.
“I'm trying my best, doing hard work, performing strength exercises, attending practice sessions regularly, delivering maximum numbers of balls in the nets and managing my workload as much as possible. Red ball ke liye workload badhana padega (for red-ball cricket, the workload needs to be increased). The series is right after the IPL. There's also an India ‘A' series. So, it is hectic for everybody,” Shami told Times of India.
He further shared his thoughts on the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from the upcoming tour after they announced their Test retirements. He further said that the youngsters are experienced enough to take the Test team forward besides admitting that the team needs his and Jasprit Bumrah's experience with the ball in England.
“Aaj kal ke cricket mey senior aur junior ka kahan fark hai (the distinction between youngsters and senior players doesn't really exist in today's cricket)! All are mature enough for international cricket these days due to the huge exposure in the IPL. The important thing to see is how the team is formed and what combinations are made. So in that sense, mera aur Bumrah ka rahna zaroori hai (it's important for me and Bumrah to be present on the England tour). Leading the bowling unit is important,” he added.
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Mohammed Shami's IPL 2025 Numbers
Mohammed Shami returned to international cricket after a 14-month layoff in January 2025. In the ongoing IPL season, playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad, he picked up six wickets from nine innings and was not even close to his best. Overall, in 64 Test matches for India, Shami has picked up 229 wickets at an average of 27.71.
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