Mohammed Shami named in Bengal squad for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024-25

Star India fast bowler Mohammed Shami has been named in the Bengal squad for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy(SMAT) 2024-25. Notably, Shami recently made a comeback to professional cricket during Bengal’s sixth-round fixture in the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 against Madhya Pradesh. The speedster made a return to the cricket pitch after almost a year as he last played in the ODI World Cup 2023 and underwent surgery for Achilles tendon injury on his left leg in February earlier this year.

The right-arm speedster shone on his comeback bowling 43.2 overs across two innings and picking six wickets as he guided Bengal to a thrilling 11-run victory. He also scored a handy 37 (36) in the second innings helping his team set a target of 338 runs in the 2^nd innings. Following his remarkable comeback, there were widespread reports claiming that Shami will be flown to Australia for the upcoming five-match Test series beginning from November 22.

The fast bowler’s fitness will be further assessed by the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) in the tournament set to begin from November 23. According to PTI, the medical staff and the national selection committee want Shami to play a few more matches before taking the flight to Australia to see how his body is holding up after playing multiple matches even if it’s a white-ball game.

Meanwhile, Shami’s younger brother Mohammed Kaif has been also named in the Bengal squad for the T20 extravaganza which also includes IPL stars Abhishek Porel and Shahbaz Ahmed. The team will be led by captain Sudip Gharamias they begin their campaign against defending champions Punjab in Rajkot.

Bengal have been put in Group A alongside Hyderabad, Meghalaya, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Bihar, Rajasthan and Punjab. The final of the tournament will be played on December 15 in Bengaluru.

Bengal squad: Sudip Kumar Gharami (C), Abishek Porel (wk), Sudip Chatterjee, Shahbaz Ahmed, Karan Lal, Writtick Chatterjee, Ritwick Roy Chowdhury, Shakir Habib Gandhi (wk), Ranjot Singh Khaira, Prayas Ray Barman, Agniv Pan (wk), Pradipta Pramanik, Saksham Chaudhary, Mohammed Shami, Ishan Porel, Mohammed Kaif, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Sayan Ghosh, Kanishk Seth and Soummyadip Mandal.