'People at NCA are not convinced yet' - Aakash Chopra sheds light on Mohammed Shami missing Australia tour

Ace pacer Mohammed Shami has not featured for the Indian team since the World Cup 2023 final against Australia in November last year. The star India cricketer's recovery has grabbed attention as he is in prolific form for Bengal in domestic cricket but remains unfit for the international arena. He was expected to make a comeback against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, but the cricketer has been termed not fully fit and has been ruled out any chances of sneaking into the team in the mid of the series.

The BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) further confirmed that Shami is not yet fully fit to rejoin the team. Though the right-arm pacer is bowling in full throttle, there were reports of potential swelling in his left knee. After the developments, former India cricketer, Aakash Chopra added that the National Cricket Academy, where Shami is being monitored is not convinced with his fitness yet.

"The swelling is on the expected lines, owing to the increased bowling after a prolonged period," the BCCI had said in a statement.

"Rohit Sharma had also spoken about it that they need news from the NCA (National Cricket Academy) because those people are monitoring his fitness. So, an update has come from there that they have been following his progress and seeing his workload and that they are not convinced yet," Chopra said in a video uploaded on his YouTube channel.

"The verdict that has come from there is Mohammed Shami is not ready to become a part of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and you can't grudge that either. You and I read the scorecard. There he bowled and took wickets, so we assumed that he would be fine. However, it's a Test match after 13 months," he added.

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Speaking of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the series is poised at 1-1 with the third Test at The Gabba resulting in a draw. Both the teams are embroiled in the ongoing fourth Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, where Australia ended up scoring 311/6 at the end of Day 1 after winning the coin toss.