Veteran pacer Mohammad Shami has played down retirement talks, expressing his willingness to play domestic cricket to regain place in the national side.

Shami, who was overlooked for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025, last played for India during the Champions Trophy in March this year.

Responding to a query over his future, Shami counter-questioned if anyone had an issue with him. He further stated that he has no intentions to retire just yet and still has plenty of cricket left in him.

"If someone has a problem, tell me, if it is like their lives become better if I take retirement. Tell me whose life have I become a rock in that you want me to retire? The day I get bored, I will leave. You don't pick me, but I will keep working hard. You don't pick me in international, I will play domestic. I will keep playing somewhere or the other. You have to make these decisions when you start feeling bored. That is not the time for me now," Shami told News24.

Shami wants to get back to the Indian team and help them win the 2027 ODI World Cup. He also reflected on India's heartbreaking loss to Australia in the 2023 ODI World Cup final, saying that luck wasn't on their side.

"I only have one dream left, that is to win the ODI World Cup. I want to be a part of that team and perform that wins the ODI World Cup and brings it home. We were very close in 2023. We had a gut feeling, but we also had a fear that we were winning non-stop, and it was the knockout stage. There was some fear. But the enthusiasm and belief of the fans motivated us. This was a dream that could have been fulfilled, but maybe it was not in my luck," he added.

Shami revealed that he has been putting hard yards for the last couple of months, working to improve various aspects of his game.

"Touchwood it is better now. For the last two months I have trained, increased my skills, shed weight and increased the load as well. Let's see the result that I get now. My focus is on getting rhythm and being able to bowl long spells. I have practiced batting and fielding as well and done a lot of gym. Everything is comfortable now," he said.

Shami was set to join the Indian team in England for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, but pulled out at the last moment after experiencing discomfort.

"We often overpush, and then we have to pay a big penalty. It happened to me during the 2015 World Cup when I pushed a lot and then had to get my knee operated on. It was the same scene in 2023. I played in pain and then I had to give up and spent a lot of time after that. I am not saying not to push, but if it is a normal series, you should talk to the management," he remarked.

Shami has represented India in 64 Tests, 108 ODIs, and 25 T20Is so far, picking up 462 wickets across formats.