Last Update: March 04, 2023, 16:21 IST
Mohammed Shami claimed a four-for in the first innings of the New Delhi Test (AP Image)
Mohammed Siraj is expected to sit out as Mohammed Shami will pair up with Umesh Yadav for the last Test of the four-match series
India’s senior-most pacer Mohammed Shami is expected to make it to the playing XI for the final Test against Australia in Ahmedabad, starting March 9, after being rested for workload management during the Indore match.
The Indian team management, in consultation with the medical staff, has taken the decision to exclude the fast bowlers, who are going to play IPL regularly and are part of the ODI World Cup plans.
Hence, Shami, who played the first two Tests and is also part of the ODI squad, was rested for the third game. He was replaced by Umesh Yadav as the second fast bowler behind Mohammad Siraj.
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Siraj needed only 24 overs in the first three matches and is likely to feature in all the three ODIs between March 17 and 22, he is likely to get some time during the final game Narendra Modi Stadium in Motera.
Shami, who has been the best pacer in both the teams with seven wickets in the 30-plus overs he has bowled, will be needed on the dry surface at Motera, which could be conducive to reverse swing.
India currently leads the four-Test series 2-1 but need to win the final game to nullify the result of Sri Lanka’s away series against New Zealand.
GCA curators haven’t received any instructions from Team India
ICC match referee Chris Broad has already criticized the Holkar Stadium in Indore for the poor track preparation and is now in Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) is unlikely to risk its reputation by preparing something diabolical that will get a red eye from the sport’s governing body.
“We have not received any instructions from the Indian team management and our local curators are preparing a normal track as we have always done throughout the season,” a state association source told PTI.
“In fact, in the last Ranji game here in January, Railways scored 500 plus (508) batting first and Gujarat, though an innings defeat, scored 200 plus in both innings. It won’t be much different this time,” he said.
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With 96 hours to go for the Test match to begin, nobody knows what will happen once BCCI curators Taposh Chatterjee and Ash Bhowmik take charge.
“Apparently, in the last few days, the ground and pitch committee of the BCCI gives instructions to the local curator. But of course, from our side, our endeavor is to prepare a good Test match pitch,” the official said.
The last time two Test matches were held in Ahmedabad during the COVID-19 pandemic, the day/night match was finished within just two days.
“You have to keep in mind that day/night Test and then the first Test was held after the renovation of the stadium and you didn’t know what the pitch would be like,” he said.
Read this also | Virat Kohli, Anushka Sharma Visit Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain after India’s 9-wicket defeat
Kohli and wife visit Mahakaleshwar temple
With the Test match ending in under two-and-a-half days, the star batsman Virat Kohli And wife Anushka Sharma visited Shri Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain on Saturday morning to offer prayers.
While some players are stuck in Indore, some players including captain Rohit Sharma have returned to Mumbai and will join the team in Ahmedabad on March 6.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)