After winning the home T20I series against Australia and South Africa, Team India’s next assignment in the shortest format is the T20 World Cup 2022, scheduled to get underway on October 16.
For the showpiece tournament, the Rohit Sharma-led Indian squad is set to leave for Australia in less than 24 hours.
According to a Cricbuzz report, the Indian contingent will depart for Australia without their 15th player.
The report claims that the Chetan Sharma-led selection committee is set to defer the announcement of a replacement for Jasprit Bumrah, who has been ruled out of the T20 World Cup with a back injury.
The situation has arisen because of uncertainty over the fitness of senior pacer Mohammad Shami, who was named in the list of T20 World Cup standby players last month.
Notably, Shami was initially announced to be a part of the T20I squad for the recently held series against Australia and South Africa. However, the fast bowler was diagnosed with COVID-19 and missed out on the six T20Is at home in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup.
As per Cricbuzz, the BCCI, the selectors and the team management have decided to wait on the progress of Shami, who hasn’t played T20Is since the T20 World Cup in UAE last year.
While Shami has started bowling in the nets, everyone wants to be sure about his readiness for the marquee event Down Under. The pacer now has been reportedly asked to reach the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.
The medical team at the NCA will gauge his fitness and report to the BCCI before a final decision is made. Apparently, the board is willing to wait till October 15 – the last date to announce the squad as per the ICC regulations.
If Shami is declared fit, he will join the Indian squad in Australia later. The Rohit Sharma-led side will open their T20 World Cup 2022 campaign against Pakistan at MCG on October 23.
In case, Shami fails to regain the desired fitness, Deepak Chahar and Mohammed Siraj’s names will then come into the picture. Both of them were part of the three-T20I series against South Africa and they will now feature in the ODI series against the Proteas, starting October 6.
(With Cricbuzz inputs)
