'Quicker Shami reaches...': Ravi Shastri minces no words as he criticises Harshit, Siraj after Travis Head onslaught
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has advocated for Mohammed Shami to be included in the squad for the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has advocated for Mohammed Shami to be included in the squad for the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia. While doing commentary on Day 2 of the Adelaide pink-ball Test, Shastri expressed his concern with India's pace attack for the series, saying the pressure on batters significantly goes down when Jasprit Bumrah is taken out of the attack.
Bumrah spearheaded India's attack in Perth and he led the visitors to an emphatic 295-run win. However, the complexion changed completely on Day 2 of the Adelaide Test as Travis Head took down the likes of Mohammed Siraj and Harshit Rana, giving Australia the edge.
When Head was going all guns blazing, Shastri said that Shami needed to be on the next flight to Australia to give the much-needed boost to the Indian pace attack.
"The quicker Mohammed Shami reaches here, the better it is for India. He is playing a lot of domestic matches," said Shastri while doing commentary for Fox Cricket.
"You can see the pressure (on the opposition) when Bumrah is bowling and others are bowling. There is a lot of pressure on Bumrah," he added.
Harshit Rana bears the brunt of Travis Head's onslaught
On Day 2 of the Adelaide Test, the left-handed Travis Head registered yet another century against India. He took a special liking to Harshit Rana. The seamer who is just playing his second Test, ended up giving away 86 runs in 16 overs.
Looking at this brutal assault, Shastri could not help himself but to namedrop Shami, saying the experienced seamer might be the solution to all problems Down Under.
"He is playing a lot of domestic matches. Brisbane might be too early but surely Shami can be available for Melbourne and Sydney," said Shastri.
Shami is currently playing for Bengal in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament. The pacer has already played seven T20s in 13 days, taking five wickets.
It was in November 2024 that Shami made his return to competitive cricket. He played a Ranji Trophy match for Bengal against Madhya Pradesh in Indore.
Shami announced his return in style as he took seven wickets in the Ranji Trophy match. Several pundits expected Shami to be on the flight to Australia after this particular domestic match, however, this wasn't to be the case.
Coming back to the Adelaide Test between India and Australia, the latter took a lead of 157 owing to Travis Head's whirlwind knock of 140 off 141 balls. Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah took four wickets each as India bowled out the hosts for 337.
Earlier, Mitchell Starc had taken six wickets to help Australia bundle out India for 180 in the first innings.
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