"Where is he when it comes to recovery?": Shastri, Ponting questions Mohammed Shami's injury management

Ravi Shastri, Ricky Pontin and Mohammed Shami

Questioning Mohammed Shami's injury management, former greats Ravi Shastri and Ricky Ponting feel the veteran pacer could have tilted the series in India's favour had he been added to the squad in the second half of the five-match Border-Gavaskar series.

The pacer, after recovering from an ankle injury, returned to action for his home state Bengal and impressed in all the three formats - Ranji Trophy, Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 and Vijay Hazare one-dayers - raising hopes of a late inclusion.

But he was officially ruled out before the fourth Test in Melbourne with the BCCI medical team citing a knee swelling, though both Ponting and Shastri believe a trip to Australia and a return late in the series could have been pushed.

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"To be honest, I was very surprised with the communication going on in the media as to what exactly happened to Mohammed Shami," the former Indian head coach stated in The ICC Review.

"Where is he when it comes to recovery? He's been sitting in the NCA for I don't know how long. Why can't proper communication come out on where he stands? A player of his ability, I would have brought him to Australia," Shastri added.

Shastri believes the fast bowler could have provided adequate help to Jasprit Bumrah, who too struggled with fitness at the end of the series and could not bowl in the second innings of the Sydney Test.

Echoing Shastri's views, Australian World Cup-winning captain Ponting said: "I was really surprised when he wasn't flown out even halfway through the series, two Test matches in.

"India's make-up obviously had Nitish Reddy there. So you had another seam bowling all-rounder anyway. So, if Shami, even if he wasn't fully fit, if he had to bowl fewer overs in a day, you had a backup seam bowling option to help him out and I think he could have been the difference," Ponting added.

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