Mohammed Shami has been ruled out of the two-Test series and is not travelling with the players to South Africa, sources told The Telegraph on Thursday.
The Test specialists will fly out to Johannesburg, via Dubai, in the early hours of Friday from Mumbai. It includes captain Rohit Sharma, vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah, Ravichandran Ashwin, Navdeep Saini, and Harshit Rana.
It is not clear if Virat Kohli will travel with them or will join the squad directly before the first Test.
The 33-year-old Shami is believed to be nursing an ankle injury and was conditionally selected when the squads were announced last month.
“Mr. Mohd. Shami is currently undergoing medical treatment, and his availability is subject to fitness,” the BCCI had said in a release.
The Board is unlikely to announce a replacement for Shami as several players are already in South Africa for the limited overs series. The team management along with the two selectors on tour, Shiv Sundar Das and Salil Ankola, are expected to decide if any of the pacers should stay back as cover for Shami.
The squad already includes pacers Shardul Thakur, Mohammad Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna besides Shami.
It was learnt that Shami had been experiencing pain in his right ankle during the World Cup. He continued with such discomfort during the showpiece event and even shouldered extra workload. He returned India’s most successful bowler with 24 wickets in seven matches at an economy of 5.26.
It is understood that he is under the supervision of BCCI’s medical team and only needs rest to regain fitness.
Shami has a fairly good record on South African soil. In eight Tests, the fast bowler has 35 wickets at an average of 23.22.
During India’s last series in South Africa in 2021-22, Shami was also the most successful bowler with 14 wickets in three Tests at an average of 21.00. India had lost the three-Test series after winning the first Test.
South African pacer Kagiso Rabada is also in doubt for the Test series.
The T20I series will be followed by three ODIs on December 17, 19, and 21. The first of the two Tests starts on Boxing Day, December 26, at Centurion. The second Test is at Newlands in Cape Town.
