Senior pacer Mohammad Shami has expressed his disappointment after missing out on a spot in the Indian squad for the upcoming five-Test tour of Australia.
Shami was keen to make his India return with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, slated to get underway on November 22 in Perth.
Shami has not played a single competitive game since his appearance in the ODI World Cup final in November last year. The right-arm quick, who underwent an operation on his Achilles tendon earlier this year, has been working on his recovery at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.
Lately, Shami has started bowling at full tilt in the nets, which made fans optimistic of his comeback in the Test series Down Under. However, his absence from the squad suggests that he is yet to regain complete fitness.
On Saturday (October 26), Mohammad Shami shared a video on social media platform Instagram, in which he could be seen performing an intense workout session under the supervision of a trainer.
The veteran campaigner also attached a heartfelt note in his post, where he said sorry to the Indian fans and BCCI for not being able to gain fitness on time.
“Putting in my efforts and getting better with my bowling fitness day by day. Will continue working hard towards getting ready for the match and playing domestic red-ball cricket. Sorry to all cricket fans and BCCI too, but very soon I’m ready to play red-ball cricket, love you all,” Shami wrote.
If Shami’s recovery goes as per the plan, he will reportedly feature in Bengal’s fourth round Ranji Trophy match against Karnataka in Bengaluru, starting November 6.
“If he continues his recovery, he can play the match against Karnataka. If he plays that fixture, he can even travel with the Indian team to Australia and play the practice fixture and then slowly integrate back into the squad. Since he suffered a setback on his comeback, he has to go through the rehab process again which is now in the final stages,” sources said, as quoted by The Indian Express.
