Delhi: As the days of selecting the team for the England tour and playing Tests in England are getting closer, the concerns for the Indian camp are increasing. This cannot be called proper preparation for 5 Tests in England. One name in this list of concerns is also that of Mohammed Shami. Although, considering Shami’s talent, past record and the lack of other effective pace options in India, the name of this 34-year-old pacer should be in the list of ‘automatic selection’, but now this is not a guarantee. On that, IPL cannot be made a criterion for selection for Test cricket, but in Shami’s case, even IPL 2025 is not supporting him. What are the 5 biggest factors that are putting Shami’s name in the selector’s list of concerns?

The issue of fitness:

He was out of the team for more than a year due to ankle and knee injuries and returned to playing T20 only in January this year. He did not play a single match for India in all three formats in 2024. Now it has been more than 4 months since his comeback but he is neither in the right rhythm nor has he been able to prove his fitness for a long spell. The selectors are looking for someone who can bowl 15 overs in a day and Shami is even bowling 4 overs in two parts in the IPL. Therefore, selecting him is no less than a big ‘risk’.

Anyway, he is away from Test cricket:

He played his last Test in June 2023. Nothing is easy for someone who is making a comeback after several months due to injury. Apart from this, he has been more famous for his white ball record in the last few years rather than his Test performance. From 2015 to 2019, he took 134 wickets in 36 Tests at an average of 23.8, but his form dropped from 2020 and his record is not special. The truth is that Shami did not play a single Test in the last WTC round, while India played 19 Tests during this period. Now people are even saying that even if he was in the team in the last Australia tour, what special support would he have given to Bumrah?

Return to white ball cricket, no guarantee of return to Test team:

He returned to Team India in January 2025 to play T20 International against England and that too after Bumrah was dropped, it was the result of the eagerness to include him in the Champions Trophy 2025 team. That is why he was directly included in the Champions Trophy but took 9 wickets in 5 ODIs at an average of 25.9 and 5 of them against Bangladesh, while in the remaining 4 matches he could take only 4 wickets at an average of 45. India won the trophy which hid all this but the record is out there. Now in IPL 2025, only 6 wickets in 9 matches at an average of 56.2 and an economy rate of 11.2 and one of the most unsuccessful bowlers of this season so far. That is why his place in the Test team was questioned.

India’s strategy will be a big risk:

There is a thought that forget all these issues and since Bumrah (who himself is not 100 percent fit) has to be supported, choose Shami (so that if Bumrah does not play, he can play) but this strategy will be a big risk.

His poor record in England:

Now that he has to play in England, he will also look at his past record on English pitches and this is: 42 wickets in 15 Tests at an average of 40.5 and this is his worst record in any country outside India. The last Test was in England itself (2023 WTC Final against Australia) in which he took 4 wickets at an average of 40.3 and was considered one of the biggest reasons for India’s defeat.

Considering all these issues, he is not an ‘automatic selection’. Still, if his team Sunrisers Hyderabad is out of the playoff race in IPL 2025, he may be given a chance to play for India A in England. If this happens, then see how the record of these matches will help him?