Mohammed Shami isn't being considered for the Indian team selection across formats, since he isn't bowling at his best, according to former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra. Shami wasn't at his best after recovering from an injury sustained during the 2023 ODI World Cup.

In five 2025 Champions Trophy matches, Shami claimed nine wickets. He didn't bowl like old Shami, though, despite a fifer in his return game in Dubai. Shami recently stated his desire to return to the team and perform well.

Mohammad Shami also wasn’t considered for the five-Test tour of England due to fitness concerns. In the recent Duleep Trophy match, Shami only succeeded in taking one wicket against the North Zone.

“I think Mohammad Shami has also said, ‘What’s your problem with me?’ Some people want him to retire. I don’t know who those people are, but he doesn’t want to retire and wants to play. He is saying that he is fit, available, and playing, and if he is playing, he should be selected. It’s a fair argument,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

“However, if you look at it from the selectors’ point of view, even after including the Champions Trophy, where he picked up a five-wicket haul, you have felt every time that he is not the 100-percent old Shami. The full-throttle Mohammad Shami wasn’t seen in the IPL. He wasn’t bowling at the same speed in the Champions Trophy. I had never seen him bowl five wides in an over, but that also happened there,” he added.

Chopra also said that Shami’s current performance and form are being compared to his past outings, which are not helping the Bengal pacer’s case.

“Shami’s problem is that everybody pays a price for their own success. I am talking about people who are more successful. You don’t compare Shami with anyone else. You compare Shami with Shami’s best, and then you see that the same Mohammad Shami is not being seen,” he explained.

Chopra believes that in order to return to the national squad, Shami must persuade the team's administration that his bowling rhythm is appropriate.

“Wickets will never be a parameter for Shami. For Shami, it would be about the rhythm he is running with, if the run-up is with the full throttle and the ball is going the same way. If that’s happening, he can be back, but the selectors, team management, and captain will have to be convinced. At this point in time, it doesn’t seem like they are convinced, and that is the reality,” Chopra observed.

Mohammad Shami was not included in India’s Asia Cup 2025 squad, and the next assignment for the Indian team will be the two-Test series against the West Indies at home.