India's star pacer Mohammed Shami will reportedly fly to London seeking consultation with an expert for the ankle injury that he suffered during the ICC World Cup. He has been out of the game since the Indian team ended up as runners-up in the 2023 edition of the ODI-World Cup.
The recipient of the prestigious Arjuna Award for his remarkable performance taking most number of wickets in the World Cup— Shami's recovery is being tracked by the National Cricket Academy (NCA). Shami also remained away from the five match test series against England, as he had not recovered.
However, reports said that the NCA is satisfied with Shami recovery. The 2023 World Cup star bowler— Shami will be accompanied by the head of NCA's sports science department Nitin Patel, to London. Cricbuzz reported that Patel and Shami have been working together on the latter's recovery process at the academy.
Apart from Shami, the Board of Cricket Control of India (BCCI) is reportedly also planning to send wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant to London. Pant's car met with an accident between Manglaur and Narsan in the Haridwar district, in 2022 after which he underwent a surgery and has been in the NCA Bengaluru. Speculations are that Pant is likely to return for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, if he recovers well and completely.
Followed by Shami and Pant, Indian opener Prithvi Shaw will also need another month to be prepared enough for the competitive cricket. He is currently undergoing agility and acceleration tests at the NCA, according to Hindustan Times. Shaw suffered an injured knee last year while representing Northamptonshire in the one-day championship game against Durham. Last year, following a 200 in the previous match, Prithvi Shaw smashed a hundred to power Northamptonshire to a six-wicket victory over Durham in the One-Day Cup.
(Published 22 January 2024, 13:28 IST)
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