'Just cut the thing and play Shami' - Aakash Chopra wants pacer to be included in XI if he is fit

Contrary to the buzz created around the international comeback of Mohammed Shami ahead of yesterday's first T20I against England, he did not end up playing the game. This came despite Shami bowling during the practice session in the buildup to the game at the Eden Gardens.

Former cricketer-turned-commentator, Aakash Chopra, noted that the only plausible reason behind not playing Shami would be the speedster not being optimally fit according to the team management.

"One match has passed, and only four are left. He hasn't played the first match, and if he hasn't played, the only meaning of that is he wasn't 100 per cent fit. If he had been fit, no excuse would work, that the pitch wasn't good, you wanted to play spin, you wished to play Ravi Bishnoi as well, and wanted to go with three spinners," shared Chopra in a video posted on his YouTube channel.

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Just cut the thing and play Shami: Chopra

The former opener further articulated that he was a bit concerned for Shami's journey back to being a regular in the national setup, while keeping the upcoming Champions Trophy in mind. 

"Please don't give me that. Just cut the thing and play Shami. I am a little worried. Four matches are left but the turnarounds are quick. Traveling also takes a toll. You might go in chartered flights but it's tough. He couldn't play the match. It means he is still not fully fit, and that is a thing we should be worried about," observed Chopra.

Interestingly, Indian T20I skipper, Suryakumar Yadav, did not explicitly mention anything about Shami during the toss, and rather hinted on having a massive pool of players to choose from, which he labelled as "a good headache" to have. India went on to win the game by seven wickets and 43 deliveries to spare.

All eyes are bound to be on Shami's participation in the upcoming fixtures of the series. For the unversed, Shami last played for the nation at the 2023 edition of the Cricket World Cup. Since then, he has been out of contention due to an ankle injury he sustained. He recently featured for Bengal in the domestic circuit, and looked his free-flowing best during those games.