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Abhishek Nayar Drops Truth Bomb On Mohammed Shami’s India Future
Follow UsShami was also overlooked for the ‘A’ series against Australia A and South Africa A
Former India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar believes the Indian selectors and team management are beginning to move on from veteran pacer Mohammed Shami, who has been left out of the squad for the upcoming two-match home Test series against South Africa, starting November 14.
The 35-year-old fast bowler has battled injury issues over the past couple of years and has not featured for India since the Champions Trophy 2025, where he finished as the joint second-highest wicket-taker in India’s title-winning campaign. His last Test appearance came in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia in 2023.
Shami, who was also overlooked for the ‘A’ series against Australia A and South Africa A, has been playing in the Ranji Trophy. Representing Bengal, he has appeared in three of four rounds of the ongoing 2025-26 season, picking up 15 wickets in five innings at an impressive average of 15.53.
Sharing his thoughts on Star Sports (as reported by The Times of India), Nayar said: “It's a clear indicator. It's an indicator that India is sort of trying to look forward. Right or wrong, it's not for us to decide.”
For the South Africa series, India have opted for three frontline seamers - Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep. The latter, who missed the West Indies Tests earlier due to injury, returns to the setup and could even feature at his home ground, Eden Gardens, in the first Test.
Nayar believes playing in familiar conditions could give Akash Deep an edge. “Akash Deep, again, is a local lad who's played a lot of cricket there, so he understands the conditions.
"He's always, to be fair to him, whenever he's got an opportunity, he has delivered with the new ball. He's made an impact. He's really liked in the setup because he goes all out every time he gets an opportunity. So it's a good investment in the future.”
The former India coach also praised the balance and depth of the current Indian squad.
“Looking at that squad, an extremely strong squad, all facets of the game, in a lot of ways, you have surety. You can play around with different combinations. And the conditions may not matter as well because you've got enormous talent in that setup.”