Mohammed Shami proved once again that he was regaining fitness as he bowled an 11-over spell in Madhya Pradesh’s second innings in the ongoing Ranji Trophy match on Friday.
Before that, the pacer also contributed 37 off 36 balls with the bat after Bengal resumed their second innings on the third day of the match. It was mainly because of useful contributions from Shami and Wriddhiman Saha (44) that Bengal managed to set the hosts a 338-run target.
Shami then opened the attack and showed good rhythm and pace with the ball. But he had to wait till his second spell in the final hour to pick up a wicket. Anubhav Agarwal was trapped leg before as Shami got one to move into the right-hander.
Shami’s performance is learnt to have pleased national selector Ajay Ratra. But how quickly he recovers following the four-day match could decide his fate.
The Bengal camp has been asked to take a go-slow approach to Shami’s workload and not put him under pressure with long spells. Nitin Patel, head of the medical panel at the Centre of Excellence, is in attendance at the ground every day to keep a close watch on him.
Shami’s selection for Australia will depend a lot on Patel’s report to the national selectors and the team management. But so far, things have been positive.
Shami took four wickets in the first innings.
Brief scores: Bengal 228 & 276 (Writtick Chatterjee 52, Wriddhiman Saha 44, Md Shami 37). MP 167 & 150/3 (Md Shami 1/55).