Mohammed Shami says he is inspired by Rishabh Pant’s patience and wants to play a couple of Ranji Trophy games before flying to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, starting on November 22.
“I had spent time with Rishabh at the National Cricket Academy, where he was doing the rehab after his injury. I have seen the images, which were so scary. What inspired me the most that I never saw him sad. All his ligaments were broken but he continued his rehab with a laugh on his face. It was a massive learning for me as well. His positive attitude taught me the importance of patience,” Shami said on the sidelines of an event in Gurgaon on Monday.
The 34-year-old pacer, who hasn’t played for India since the 2023 ODI World Cup, was seen bowling to assistant coach Abhishek Nayar after the conclusion of the first Test between India and New Zealand at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday.
“It felt great yesterday. Before that, I had been bowling with a half run-up because I didn’t want to put too much load on my body,” he said.
Mohammed Shami is gunning for a Ranji Trophy return before the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. (PTI)
“We decided yesterday that I would bowl at full intensity for the last two sessions and I gave my 100%. It felt good, the results were encouraging. Hopefully, I’ll be back on track soon.”
Shami had been sidelined with a left Achilles heel injury for almost a year and the recent setback has derailed his comeback for the Australia tour but the bowler is optimistic about his fitness.
“I know everyone has been thinking about whether I will go to Australia or not but that series is still far away,” he said.
“The only thing I want to focus on is how to keep myself fit and how to get as strong as I can for the tour. I know what kind of an attack we want for that Test series, so it’s better for me to work on the nuances and spend some more time on the ground before going.
“If I get fit and I get a gap of eight to ten days, then it’s better that I play one or two domestic matches before going to Australia.
Indian bowler Mohammed Shami. (FILE photo)
“I don’t know when I can play next but the day I feel comfortable about bowling 20-30 overs and I get the nod from the doctors, I’ll make a run to play a match. I want to spend as much time as I can on the ground before going for the Australia series.
Shami confirmed that he is still unsure about his availability for Bengal’s next round Ranji Trophy fixture, beginning October 26.
“Not sure about the next fixture but if I would feel that I am ready to bowl 20 overs per day and doctors will give me a go ahead I will run from my rehab,” he said.
The India fast bowler is also optimistic that the Rohit Sharma-led team will again win the series in Australia. Shami had played a crucial role in India’s first-ever Test series win in Australia in 2018-19, when he bagged 16 wickets in four matches. However, he had played just the first Test, in Adelaide, when India toured next in 2020-21 before he returned home with an injury.
“We can still win. We enjoy the bounce. We won because we have four different fast bowlers. We just need to put some runs on the board and our bowlers can do the job,” he said.
Shami credited India’s pace battery for winning the Test matches abroad.
“We have worked as a unit since 2014. “India never had three bowlers at a time who could bowl over 140kph. Maybe two at max. Now we even have some on the bench who can bowl 145kph,” he said.
“Every opponent waits for one easy kind of bowler, but that’s how you create fear that all our bowlers are 145kph and have different kind of skills. And we showed how to fight when we toured overseas. Earlier we used to be on the safe side or our pace attack wasn’t that aggressive. Abhi it ka jawaab patthar se dete hai (Now we know how to pay it back).”
