New Delhi: Premier pacer Mohammed Shami insists hunger to play for the Indian team has facilitated his return after a long injury lay-off. The right arm pacer was included in the Indian team for the white-ball series against England starting on Wednesday after a gap of 14 months.
Shami had been on the sidelines with an ankle injury since India’s defeat to Australia in the ODI World Cup final in November of 2023. His injury requires surgery after which he underwent a long rehabilitation process.
He is expected to be in the playing XI against England in the first T20I in Kolkata in Wednesdya and has also been named in the ODI Champions Trophy squad.
“The hunger to play for the country should never be quenched. If you love him, you will always keep fighting back, even if you get injured 10 times (The first thing I feel is that the hunger to play for the country should never end,” Shami said at Cricket Association of Bengal felicitation programme.
“If you have that hunger, you will always fight back, no matter how many times you get injured.
“It always remains in my mind that no matter how many matches I play, it always feels like less. Because once I leave cricket, I may never get this chance again),” he added.
‘Hard work and dedication’
Shami’s injury kept him out of key assignments including the T20 World Cup and Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test series, which India lost 1-3 in Australia. The Bengal pacer said that overcoming injuries is an essential part of an athlete’s career.
“If you are hard working and committed, no injury can keep you away for too long. You will always find a way to return,” the 34-year-old said.
“It has never happened that players who represent their state or country think about leaving the game after an injury. Whenever we get injured, the only thought in our mind is — when can we return.”
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