Mohammed Shami is back in the Indian team for the upcoming T20I series against England. However, Rishabh Pant has been excluded from the squad. India has decided to pick Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel as the wicketkeepers for the series.
Shami last played for India in the final of the ODI World Cup against Australia on November 19, 2023. After that match, he had surgery due to a heel injury, which kept him out of the IPL 2024 and the T20 World Cup last year.
During his recovery, he had swelling in his knee, which caused him to miss India’s home Test series against Bangladesh and New Zealand. He also had a side strain in November, which stopped him from going to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.
Shami returned to playing in the Ranji Trophy for Bengal and then participated in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy. He has given strong ball performances and played useful knocks with the bat.
Pant is a notable player missing from the squad, who last played a T20I during the Sri Lanka tour. Jurel has been included as the second wicketkeeper in the 15-man squad, with Samson likely to keep his spot in the playing XI at the top of the order. Jurel has featured in 2 T20Is for India during their tour of Zimbabwe.
Most of the Indian players from the Border-Gavaskar Trophy squad have been rested, except for Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, and Harshit Rana. Suryakumar Yadav will lead the Men in Blue, with Axar Patel named as his vice-captain.
The T20I series against England begins with the first match in Kolkata on January 22, followed by games in Chennai (Jan 25), Rajkot (Jan 28), Pune (Jan 31), and Mumbai (Feb 2).
Read more: Predicting India’s Champions Trophy Squad
Jasir Basharat is a cricket enthusiast capturing the heart of the game through insightful analysis and storytelling sharing his passion for the sport through engaging narratives. He is a business graduate from University of Kashmir.
