After being axed from the Indian Test team for the England tour, veteran Indian pacer Mohammed Shami is likely to make his in domestic cricket after reportedly being named in Bengal’s list of 50 probables for the upcoming domestic season.
Shami could potentially be a part of the East Zone in the season-opening Duleep Trophy as per ESPNCricinfo. The Duleep Trophy will kick off on August 28, and the tournament, back to its old inter-zonal format, could well mark Shami’s comeback to competitive cricket if selected in the team.
The line-up of probables for Bengal includes all the expected names, including Abhimanyu Easwaran, Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar, Shahbaz Ahmed and Abishek Porel.
Shami was excluded from the 18-player Indian squad for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy after the BCCI’s medical team informed the Indian board that the 34-year-old pacer won’t be able to bowl longer spells.
Shami had undergone ankle surgery in 2024, which halted his cricket for nearly a year. He made his comeback earlier this year through the T20 format and was later part of the Champions Trophy, where he finished as the joint-highest wicket-taker for India with mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy. He then played IPL 2025 for Sunrisers Hyderabad, but his performance did not match his usual high standards.
The Bengal pacer had missed key events for India, including last year’s T20 World Cup in Australia and the West Indies, and also the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia in recent months.
“I waited for an entire year and I worked very hard. There was a sense of fear even while running about what will happen or what will not happen. It’s very difficult for any player to get injured while he is in full flow. Then go to the NCA for rehabilitation and make a comeback. When you go through injuries, I feel you grow stronger as an athlete. Because you have to repeat a lot of things while being mentally strong,” Shami had told BCCI TV in an interview post his recovery.