What’s the story?
Indian pacer Mohammed Shami has been asked to join the Indian team in Kanpur to work on his rehabilitation. Chief selector MSK Prasad confirmed this development and also revealed that he won’t take part in the T20I series against England that gets underway tomorrow.
“The facilities in his hometown are not good enough. That's why we asked him to come to Kanpur so that the team physio could keep a proper tab on his improvement," chairman of selectors, MSK Prasad said.
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Shami injured his knee during the third Test between India and England and didn’t take part in the last two matches. He also missed the subsequent ODI series against the English and is likely to sit out of the one-off Test against Bangladesh.
He is yet to recover from the injury and has not been included in the Bengal squad for the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament as the team management are not willing to take any risks with the right-arm pacer. Shami injured his knee in the 2015 World Cup and was out of action for over a year and his return has been cut short by the reoccurrence of the injury.
The heart of the matter
The Indian pacer is recovering from the knee injury and is advised to join the team as the facilities in his hometown are not good enough, and at the same time, the team physio could monitor his progress. In spite of Prasad confirming that he won’t be a part of the T20I series against England, Shami was seen bowling with a slower and a shorter run-up in the nets at the Green Park stadium in Kanpur ahead of the first T20I.
The National Cricket Academy (NCA) doesn't have its leading physio, Patrick Farhart, as the Australian is travelling with the Indian team along with trainer Anand Date, while another physio, Rajnikanth is working with the under-19 team.
Also read: Mohammed Shami faces flak on social media yet again
What's next?
The team management will expect Shami to recover before the start of the four-match Test series against Australia as the Bengal pacer is key to India’s chances in the series.
Sportskeeda’s take
Mohammad Shami is one of the best pacers India has ever produced and has all the qualities to become a legendary bowler. But, he is often troubled by a knee injury and the team management should manage his workload and use him judiciously as he is someone who can bowl well across all the formats irrespective of the conditions.
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