It’s the fifth round of the Ranji Trophy, and the last one for now as the Indian domestic season drifts into the white-ball formats next week, starting with the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The big talking point even before a ball has been bowled is Mohammed Shami’s return to competitive cricket for the first time since last year’s World Cup final in Ahmedabad.
This game could tell us if he’s ready for the rigours of first-class cricket. More importantly, it’d give the national selectors a chance to assess if they can take a punt on him for the second half of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. As things stand, this is the only red-ball game he’ll get to play in until early January if he were to stay back in India. However, if he pulls up well, maybe, just maybe, he could be in with a shout to feature in a practice game against the Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra, between the first and second Test?
We’ll have to wait a while to see Shami bowl because Bengal have been put in to bat by Madhya Pradesh in Indore.
