Mohammed Shami, who was picked up by Gujarat Titans at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 auction for a price of ₹6.25 crore, is still waiting to know, whether he would be retained by the franchise ahead of the upcoming mega auction. The speedster, who has taken 20 and 28 wickets, respectively, in the IPL 2022 and 2023, had missed the tournament earlier this year due to an ankle injury.
Shami, who is still recovering from the same injury, has candidly opened up about not hearing anything from the franchisor regarding being retained. Every franchise must announce their player retention list by October 31, 2024.
“I don’t know anything about this. The decision lies firmly with the franchise. If they feel the need to retain me, then they will. Otherwise, they won’t,” Mohammed Shami told SportsTak.
“I haven’t had any word with them so far, but if they do give the option, then who would refuse them?” he added.
Shami has taken 127 wickets from 110 matches at an average of 26.86.
Shami gives crucial update on his fitness ahead of Border Gavaskar Trophy
During the same SportsTak interview, Mohammed Shami said that is on a path to recovery, and he would like to play a few domestic games before travelling to Australia to play competitive cricket.
“There is a lot of hype surrounding the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. But I think there is no need for this much chatter around this series. We have won two times in Australia, there is no need to take so much pressure,” said Shami.
“My knee is very good right now. I am also scared that the leg has been operated upon before, and because of the dryness, I try not to put much workload on it. Rohit Sharma has asked me about my injury, as a captain, he needs to know the reality. Right now, I am in good shape, hopefully, I will be fine soon,” he added.
Speaking about his desire to play in the Ranji Trophy, Shami said, “If I stay fit, I want to play domestic cricket, I want to spend time on the ground. If you play quality cricket, then you would do just fine in international cricket, as well.”
Speaking about Mohammed Shami, the pacer had last played competitive cricket during the 2023 ODI World Cup. He last played for India in the 2023 World Cup final against Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
