'I'd have just brought him here even if he’s not fit' - Damien Fleming questions Mohammed Shami's exclusion from India squad

Recently, Mohammed Shami had revealed that he has recovered well from his Achilles Tendon injury caused during the World Cup 2023 which kept him out of action since then. He wished to play at least two Ranji Trophy games before making a comeback in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, scheduled to commence in Australia from November 22. It is worth noting that India are defending the trophy, winning it consecutively for the third time. 

As it stands out, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced an 18-member squad which will tour down under and Shami’s name was not on the list. After the star pacer’s non-induction, former Australian pacer, Damien Fleming has showed remorse over the pacer’s exclusion. He even stated that India could have gone with the right-arm pacer even if he is “not fit”.

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“That decision significantly damages their chances of winning out here. I would have just brought him here even if he’s not fit until the third Test," Fleming told The Age.

As the 34-year-old missed out, India have roped in two potential debutants in the form of pacer, Harshith Rana and seam bowling all-rounder, Nitish Kumar Reddy. Moreover, the board has dropped Axar Patel and has brought in Washington Sundar. To bolster the bowling attack, Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, and Khaleel Ahmed are named as travelling reserves.

India’s squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy:

Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar

Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed

Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 schedule: