Former Indian batter Mohammad Kaif questioned Mohammed Shami’s continuous absence from the ODI format after the series against the West Indies. Kaif stated veteran batters like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have proved their mettle despite questions raised on their form and fitness.
Similarly, Kaif reckons Shami could have also delivered for India if he had been given his opportunity and captain Shubman Gill won’t have looked so clueless as he did against the West Indies. Shami has performed consistently in the domestic circuit and his continuous absence is a surprise for a lot of pundits.
Indian bowlers conceded 405 runs in the second game at Guwahati and then could not defend 351 runs in the final match against the Windies.
“Rohit and Virat proved your planning wrong. The questions and marks on them that you had, you have got the answer for that. I am sure if Shami had been backed, he would have done the same. He is such a solid bowler. Maybe Gill may not have looked as clueless or had so many problems and finding out who will partner Bumrah, if Shami was playing right now,” he said in a video on his YouTube channel.
The former UP batter questioned the selectors for moving on from Rohit Sharma as ODI captain after 2025 Champions Trophy. He added that Rohit and Virat have been able to consistently deliver and the selectors could be wrong in not backing Shami.
“Even Rohit was removed from captaincy after the 2025 Champions Trophy. He scored in the final. There were questions on Virat too. It has been almost two years since the Champions Trophy. Even today, if you make the playing XI, these two will be at the top in that list. They have forced you to fix their spots in the XI for the World Cup. So your thinking and decision making was wrong even then. They are fit, in form and scoring. So in a similar way, maybe you are getting it wrong with Shami as well,” the former RCB batter reflected.
“If your thinking was right, Rohit and Virat would not have survived till now. It is the same case with Shami. If he was playing, he would be in the list too. Look at his current form. Why is he not eligible? That too in a time where you don’t have bowlers who are even half as skilled as him,” he added.
Shami recently took seven wickets in the Duleep Trophy while playing for East Zone.
