India’s veteran right-arm pacer, Mohammad Shami, has been out of the national side’s Test set-up for a long time. His last international red-ball clash came in 2023 during the World Test Championship (WTC) final in South London against Australia. But despite being fit, the right-arm pacer missed the last trip down under and the away England series. 

Shami has overall picked up 229 wickets in 122 innings for India in Tests at an average of around 28 and a strike rate of 50 with the help of six five-wicket hauls at the best of 6/56 in an inning. However, despite his continuous success in the Ranji Trophy 2025/26, picking 15 wickets in three games for Bengal, Shami has been ignored from the eleven.

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“There have been multiple times that national selectors and support staff from the BCCI Centre of Excellence have called to check on Shami. The selection committee was desperate to get his services in England, as Jasprit Bumrah could not have played more than three Tests. Who wouldn’t want a bowler of his calibre in English conditions?” The board official expressed, as quoted by PTI.

Mohammad Shami’s shocking decision pushes his exit from national Test side- Reports

Shami has picked up 15 wickets for Bengal, including a fifer against Gujarat, as he remained wicketless against Tripura but decided not to play the ongoing clash against the Railways. However, over the last three weeks, he has bowled 93 overs with the red ball. But the question stands whether he would again feature for the Indian side in the longest format.

“So the narrative that there was no communication with Shami isn’t an absolute truth. The sports science team also has his medical reports and whether his body will be able to take the rigors of international cricket.” The reports claimed that Shami had perhaps played the last game for the national side in Tests.

The veteran, who featured in the Champions Trophy 2025 in March this year, has made himself available for the Ranji Trophy clash against Assam, which will be followed by the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025-26 against Baroda, starting on November 26.