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India's star fast bowler Mohammed Shami is ready to return to competitive cricket after being away from cricket for almost a year. Shami will represent Bengal in the Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh starting on Wednesday.
NCA gave permission to play
The National Cricket Academy (NCA) has given Shami approval to play. The return of this right-arm fast bowler was considered certain for a long time, but due to the delay in receiving the fitness certificate from NCA, he was not able to participate earlier. It was claimed that for this reason he was not selected in the Indian team for the 5-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against Australia.
Ready to return after a year
Experienced bowler Mohammed Shami was last seen playing in the ODI World Cup 2023 against Australia in Ahmedabad on November 19 last year. Since then the pacer has been struggling with injuries. He has been battling with an ankle injury and underwent surgery on his right foot in March earlier this year. Shami has been at the Bengaluru's National Cricket Academy for his rehabilitation.
Shami will play Ranji match against Madhya Pradesh
Bengal Cricket Association Honorary Secretary Naresh Ojha said in a statement, "In a major boost to Indian cricket and the Bengal Ranji Trophy team, star pacer Mohammad Shami will make a comeback into competitive cricket for Bengal against Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy Elite Group C match in Indore starting on Wednesday,"
Shami's inclusion will provide a boost to Bengal's fast bowling attack as their bowlers like Akash Deep and Mukesh Kumar are currently in Australia with the Indian team. So far in Ranji Trophy 2024, Bengal has scored 8 points in 4 matches, while Madhya Pradesh has scored 10 points in the same number of matches.
May return to Indian team
The Indian team will be seen playing a five-match Test series against Australia from November 22. Shami's fitness will be very important for India and he will be monitored during the Ranji match. If Shami proves his fitness in the upcoming four-day match, then it is expected that he can be included in the team for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
The selection committee has selected Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana for this series. At the same time, Mukesh Kumar and Khalil Ahmed have been included in the team as reserves.