Former BCCI president Sourav Ganguly suggested that the Indian pacer Mohammed Shami should straight away travel to Australia for the upcoming Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 tour.
The 34-year-old pacer made a stunning comeback into competitive cricket after 360 days due to his ankle injury and underwent surgery earlier this year.
His crucial performance with both bat and ball for Bengal in the ongoing Ranji Trophy Elite Group C fixtures helped his team secure an 11-run victory against Madhya Pradesh. In 2 innings, Shami bagged 7 wickets. It includes his impressive bowling figures of 4-54 in 19 overs (4 maiden overs) and 3-102 in 24.2 overs (3 maiden overs) in both innings. Additionally, he made a handy contribution in the lower order by scoring 37 runs from 36 balls (including 2 fours and 2 sixes) in the second innings, which was indeed his highest score in first-class cricket.
Despite a long gap, the veteran fast bowler managed to grab the selector’s focus to be a part of the Australian tour.
Although this was Shami’s first game since the ODI World Cup 2023 final match against Australia, it wouldn’t be enough to confirm his bowling capabilities in a test based on the outcome of a single match.
To accommodate the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) in a busy domestic cricket season, the Ranji Trophy with a small break from November to December resumes back on January 23. As a result, a few experts have recommended Shami to play a couple of matches in the SMAT 2024 to get back to his peak form for the BGT 2024-25.
However, Ganguly strongly believes that the 2023 World Cup’s leading wicket-taker should participate in the second test if not the series opener.
Sourav Ganguly About Mohammed Shami’s Participation in BGT 2024-25
During his recent conversation with RevSportz, Sourav Ganguly said that Mohammed Shami has already proven his fitness and without any doubt, he should travel to Australia rather than play the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy:
“YES! Based on his performance today he (Mohammed Shami) should travel to Australia for the reason that he won’t need to participate in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Suppose, he misses out on the first test in Perth, he should be on the next flight. Possibly, he might be a part of Team India’s squad after the second Test in Adelaide.
Now that he made a successful comeback by proving his fitness and taking more wickets, his presence will be essential for India, particularly in the latter half of the tour. It isn’t mandatory that Shami should prove his fitness by playing another domestic cricket such as the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
In recent times, the Indian team’s fast bowling combination of Bumrah and Siraj was strengthened with Shami’s inclusion. It was much stronger when compared to the pairing of Bumrah, Siraj, and Prasidh. But, what if the fast bowlers get injured? Similar is the situation with Mohammed Shami, who should travel to Australia as soon as possible,” the former Indian captain said.
One of the main reasons why Sourav Ganguly is confident about Mohammed Shami’s participation is due to his impressive record on Australian soil. At a bowling average of 32.16, the talented Indian pacer grabbed 31 wickets in 8 matches.
India’s Chances to Win the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25: Sourav Ganguly Makes a Bold Prediction
Team India enters the Border Gavaskar Trophy after a 0-3 series loss to New Zealand at home and Sourav Ganguly makes a stunning prediction by highlighting the visitors’ chances of winning the series:
“Certainly! India has a chance of winning despite not winning the home test series against New Zealand. I know that they weren’t able to play on such pitches. Having quality players such as Ashwin, Jadeja, Kuldeep, Axar, and Washington, you don’t need turning pitches that take away the batting performance. Apart from Sarfaraz Khan, none of the batters scored a century. Based on my captaincy experience, during Virat Kohli’s tenure as captain, a few pitches turned a lot which made the batsman lose confidence in not being able to accumulate runs. I feel that this is something that needs to be seriously considered.
Although, the Ashes is one of the highly anticipated series, India vs Australia and India vs England are the two best series in the cricket world that have been a favorite for me. Also, there is enough action in this series that makes the contest more fascinating, and I am eagerly waiting to watch,” Sourav Ganguly said.
Conclusion:
Despite the uncertainty surrounding the experienced pacer’s participation in the Australian tour, Sourav Ganguly insists he should travel to Australia. This approach could ensure his practice in the nets and get ready regardless of his presence in the BGT’s curtain-raiser opener in Perth.
Finally, Mohammed Shami’s comeback seems to be a huge boon for the Indian cricket team to add fuel to the pace bowling attack.