Mohammed Shami’s fitness for the upcoming Test series against South Africa is highly uncertain; therefore, his exclusion from the two matches against the Proteas would not be unexpected.
According to a report by CricAdvisor on December 5, the Indian pacer is unable to accompany the remaining players selected for the Tests to South Africa due to an ankle injury. On Friday, December 15, the final group of players, which includes captain Rohit Sharma, is slated to depart for Johannesburg. However, among them will not be the 33-year-old veteran pacer.
Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, R Ashwin, Navdeep Saini, and Harshit Rana, in addition to the captain, will depart for South Africa via Dubai on Friday. Although the selectors have not yet named a replacement for Shami, it is believed that one of the pacers can be co-opted into the Test setup, given the number of players already in South Africa for T20Is, ODIs, Tests, and A series. At the moment, over seventy-five Indian players are on tour in South Africa.
Shami was a conditional selection for the Test series, and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) made it plain that he was undergoing treatment at the time of squad selection for the South Africa series on November 30. According to the BCCI statement regarding Shami, “Mr. Mohd. Shami’s availability is contingent upon his fitness, as he is presently undergoing medical treatment.”
The pacer had been contending with ankle pain, and it has come to light that he continued to shoulder the burden for the World Cup notwithstanding the discomfort, specifically during the delivery point when he planted his right foot.
The first of the two Tests begins at Centurion on Boxing Day, December 26. The inaugural Test takes place at Newlands in Cape Town; however, prior to that, a three-day competition commences on December 20 for the Test selections. Later that evening, India will host the Proteas for the third and final match of the Twenty20 International series at the Wanderers. Three ODIs are scheduled to follow the T20Is on December 17, 19, and 21.
I feel for the fans: Rohit
Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma, speaking for the first time since the World Cup final, released a heartfelt video message for the fans on Wednesday. “After the final, it was very hard to get back and start moving on, which is why I decided that I need to get my mind out of this. But then, wherever I was, I realised that people were coming up to me and they were appreciating everyone’s effort, how well we played. I feel for all of them. They all, along with us, were dreaming of lifting that World Cup.” Rohit said.
The skipper added, “Everywhere we went during this entire campaign, there was so much support from everyone who came to the stadium firstly and people who were watching it from home as well. I want to appreciate what the people have done for us, in that one and half month period. But again, if I think more and more about that I feel quite disappointed that we were not able to go all the way.”
