Veteran Indian fast bowler Mohammed Shami hasn’t played any cricket since the 2023 ODI World Cup because he went through surgery on his Achilles tendon. The injury ruled him out of contention for both the 2024 Indian Premier League and also the 2024 T20 World Cup. But Shami is back training and thus will add much-needed impetus to his bid for an imminent comeback to international cricket.

Not long ago, Mohammed Shami was seen in the nets, not only improving his bowling but also spending time on batting practice. Thursday, he posted a video on his official Instagram account, giving his fans a glimpse of his batting practice.

Mohammed Shami captioned the video rather playfully, “When the bowler picks up a bat, expect the unexpected.” Though Shami is primarily celebrated as a lethal bowler, he has shown that he doesn’t really lag much behind even with the bat on several occasions. One of his most memorable contributions with the bat was an unbeaten 56-run innings against England during the 2021 Lord’s Test—a performance that will stay etched in the minds of all cricket lovers.

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Shami last represented his national team in the 2023 ODI World Cup, which was hosted by India. Shami was out of the playing XI since the beginning, with things changing midway after the declaration of all-rounder Hardik Pandya as out due to an injury he had suffered in one of the matches against Bangladesh.

 

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The opportunity meant that Shami went on to produce some of the more prolific performances of the tournament, including the scintillating seven-wicket haul in the all-important semifinal encounter against New Zealand. His exploits with the ball earned him the distinction of being the top wicket-taker of the tournament, with 24 wickets in just seven matches.

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With Shami gearing up for his comeback, cricket fans are awaiting that he will again blaze the tracks during India’s upcoming two-Test series against Bangladesh at home. The series will start on the 19th of September in the M A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, and the second Test would be held in Green Park in Kanpur starting on September 27. The two teams would also play a three-match T20I series following the Test series that begins in October at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala.