Veteran Indian pacer Mohammed Shami has once again made headlines, this time for taking a subtle dig at the BCCI selectors over his exclusion from India’s ODI and T20I squads. The 35-year-old fast bowler has been sidelined from India’s recent assignments — including the England Test series, the West Indies home Tests, and the upcoming Australia tour — reportedly due to “fitness concerns.”
Shami, however, has strongly refuted these claims, questioning the lack of direct communication from the selectors. Shami, who last played for India during the 2025 Champions Trophy in the UAE, expressed his disappointment at the way the situation has been handled.
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“The Indian team didn’t communicate with me regarding fitness. I am not the one who should inform them — they need to ask me. If I can play four-day cricket, why can’t I play a 50-over game? If I wasn’t fit, I’d be at the NCA, not playing Ranji Trophy,” he said in an interview with India Today.
Can we have some answers to this @BCCI and @imAagarkar?
Shami has been an exceptional performer for us in the past. Going forward if he is not in your plans, you should at least communicate that to him. This is no way to treat a champion bowler. pic.twitter.com/aj6v8KVYaW
— Cricketologist (@AMP86793444) October 14, 2025
The controversy deepened after chief selector Ajit Agarkar stated in a press conference that Shami’s omission was not due to fitness but because he “hasn’t played enough cricket in recent months.” Agarkar remarked, “He played in the Duleep Trophy, but over the last two-three years, he hasn’t had a lot of game time. As a performer, we know his ability, but he needs to play more cricket.”
Despite the uncertainty around his India comeback, Shami continues to stay active in domestic cricket. He has been named in Bengal’s squad for the 2025–26 Ranji Trophy season, alongside Akash Deep, under the captaincy of Abhimanyu Easwaran. For now, Shami seems focused on letting his performances do the talking, as questions over his fitness and selection linger.
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Bengal squad: Abhimanyu Easwaran (captain), Abishek Porel (vice-captain/wk), Sudip Kumar Gharami, Anustup Majumdar, Sudip Chatterjee, Sumanta Gupta, Saurabh Kumar Singh, Vishal Bhati, Mohammed Shami, Akash Deep, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Shakir Habib Gandhi (wk), Ishan Porel, Kazi Junaid Saifi, Rahul Prasad, Sumit Mohanta and Vikash Singh.
