Mohammed Shami’s career in danger? New injury could prevent Test return

The 34-year-old Indian pacer recently picked up a knee injury which has put his return to international cricket in severe jeopardy

Indian pacer Mohammed Shami’s last competitive outing came back during the 2023 ODI World Cup final against Australia where the Men in Blue ended up facing a heavy defeat.

After the match, Shami would encounter an achilles tendon injury which would keep him on the sidelines for a long time. The severe injury necessitated a right heel surgery in London in February.

Shami’s careful rehab, overseen by the Sports Science team at the National Cricket Academy (NCA), progressed excellently, raising the speculations of him returning to the international fold with the 3-match Test series against New Zealand at home. There were also rumours that he will feature in all the Tests in Border-Gavaskar series which is set to commence from November 22.

Due to a meticulous Return to Play protocol, it was decided that Shami would first have to feature in the opening Ranji Trophy matches for Bengal before making his return to the Indian team.

However, this is where the 34-year-old hit a roadblock as he recently picked up a knee injury which could put his return to international cricket in jeopardy.

Shami contracted swelling in his knee, an unusual development that has forced him to start from scratch and might prevent him from playing even a single Test against Australia.

“He is working with the physios, with the doctors at NCA. We are keeping our fingers crossed. We want him to be 100% fit, more than anything else. We don’t want to bring an undercooked Shami to Australia,” Indian skipper Rohit Sharma told the media on Tuesday.

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