Explained: Why BCCI snubbed Mohammed Shami for Afghanistan series
What's the story
Ajit Agarkar, the chairman of selectors for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has clarified why pacer Mohammed Shami was not picked for the upcoming multi-format series against Afghanistan. While announcing the Test and ODI squads, Agarkar said that there were no talks about Shami's return to Tests as he is "ready for T20 cricket" despite playing a domestic season.
Long absence
Here's why Shami was ignored
Shami, 35, has been away from the national team for over a year. He last played for India in the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy final. The speedster made his competitive return and had a stellar domestic season with Bengal, taking 67 wickets. However, Agarkar said that "from the information that I have got, it's that at this point it's T20 cricket that he's sort of ready for."
Performance review
Shami's last appearance for India
While Shami's ODI appearance was over a year ago, he last played in whites in the 2023 ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final at The Oval. Shami's last T20I outing was against England in February last year. Being India's mainstay pacer for a decade, the 35-year-old has 462 wickets from 197 internationals. He topped the wicket tally in the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup before an injury stalled his career.
Information
Shami in IPL 2026
Shami started the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) well for Lucknow Super Giants. Despite showing his accuracy, the pacer has been inconsistent, taking 10 wickets from 12 games at over 41 (ER: 8.80).
Squads
India's squads for Afghanistan series
Test squad: Shubman Gill (captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul (vice-captain), Sai Sudharsan, Rishabh Pant, Devdutt Padikkal, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Manav Suthar, Gurnoor Brar, Harsh Dubey, and Dhruv Jurel. ODI squad: Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vice-captain), KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Prince Yadav, Gurnoor Brar, and Harsh Dubey.