Ex-Australian captain Ricky Ponting believes that India failed to use the golden opportunity when Mohammed Shami was not flown to play the last two matches of the series within the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The former 50-year-old batter feels Shami could have changed the game had he participated in the last two matches with the series standing at 1-1.
“I was really surprised when he (Shami) wasn’t flown out even halfway through the series, two Test matches in,” Ponting said in the latest episode of The ICC Review.
“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,” he added.
Ponting, who has taken off his playing career hat to become an expert, commentator, and coach, has stated that Shami is very much a part of Team India, and if he was there (in Australia) along with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, then things could have been absolutely different.
That was the first thing I said. That’s how important I felt he was to India. If Shami, Bumrah, and Siraj were in their starting team, I think things could have been completely different here in Australia.”
According to former head coach of India, Ravi Shastri, Shami would have been the ideal help to complement Bumrah.
“It’s tight now at 1-1 and going into Melbourne. You just need that experience and support. To be fair, he could have raised the bar himself. And it would have been the two guys there (Bumrah and Shami).”
“Then Pat Cummins could not do it all by himself; Scotty Boland had to step in. Therefore, you want a bowler like that in experience. You know, as much as Mohammed Siraj tried, Shami’s experience was needed there,” he added.
The last time the bowler played a Test match for India was in the WTC 2023 final against Australia in June 2023 at The Oval.
