Navjot Singh Sidhu former Indian cricketer, has supported Mohammed Shami’s selection for the forthcoming England series amid rumours of him being excluded, as reported by Sports Today. Mohammed Shami hasn’t played test cricket for the past 23 months. He last played against Australia in the World Test Championship 2023 and made a comeback to international cricket in January 2025.
Shami’s IPL Performance
In the IPL 2025, Mohammed Shami’s performance has not been the best so far, having scalped just six wickets from nine innings. The fast bowler was majorly out of his form in the T20 extravaganza, raising doubts on his preparedness to play Test cricket. Despite all the criticism, Navjot Singh Sidhu has supported Shami’s selection for the England tour due to his ability to make the ball nip off the surface.
Navjot Singh Sidhu backs Shami
“Let me tell you about Shami — a lot of people might be thinking, ‘No, he’s expensive with the white ball,’ but that’s wrong. When the red ball comes into play, the seam protrudes — it’s almost upright, and it stays that way. When the seam hits, Shami makes it nip off the surface by about six inches, and that movement causes more trouble than the one that swings in the air. That’s why, as a red-ball bowler, he is a match-winner — out and out,” Sidhu told Sports Today in an exclusive interview.
Shami has played 14 Tests in England and has scalped 42 wickets at an average of 40.50 with best figures of 4/57 in an innings. In his absence, during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the onus of leading India’s pace attack fell on Jasprit Bumrah’s shoulders alone. The speedster did a remarkable job by taking 32 wickets from ten matches but was overburdened throughout the series due to lack of support.