Melbourne: Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting expressed his surprise at the absence of veteran pacer Mohammed Shami from the Indian team during the latter stages of the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He suggested that having Shami available to bowl a few overs as a backup seam option could have significantly benefited the visitors, according to a report from the ICC Cricket site.
The Border-Gavaskar Trophy proved challenging for Indian bowlers, with only pace leader Jasprit Bumrah making a notable impact, claiming 32 wickets across five matches. The rest of the bowling lineup struggled against Australian batsmen, particularly Travis Head and Steve Smith, who each scored two centuries during the series. These performances were pivotal in securing a 3-1 series victory for Australia. Mohammed Siraj managed 20 wickets at an average exceeding 31, while Nitish Kumar Reddy and Akash Deep took five wickets each, with averages of 38.00 and 54.00, respectively, failing to deliver significant contributions.
Although Shami had not participated in international cricket since the 2023 Cricket World Cup Final due to an ankle injury that required surgery in early 2024, he had played in domestic red-ball cricket prior to the Test series, raising expectations for his involvement in Australia.
However, he was officially ruled out before the fourth Test in Melbourne, with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) medical team citing knee swelling as the reason. Currently, he is competing for Bengal in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, India's premier one-day cricket tournament.
In a recent episode of ICC Review discussing Shami's absence, Ponting remarked, "I was really surprised when he was not flown out even halfway through the series, two Test matches in. India's lineup included Nitish Reddy, providing another seam bowling all-rounder option."
If Shami had been available, even in a limited capacity, with the option to bowl fewer overs, there would have been a backup seam bowler to support him, which could have made a significant impact.
In a previous discussion on The ICC Review, when asked about my prediction for the series outcome, I mentioned a 3-1 victory for Australia primarily due to Shami's absence. His importance to the Indian team was evident to me.
Had Shami, Bumrah, and Siraj been part of the starting lineup, the situation in Australia might have unfolded quite differently, he concluded.
Currently, Shami has participated in two matches for Bengal in the VHT, claiming two wickets thus far. In the preceding Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament, he took 11 wickets in nine matches, averaging 25.36.
