Test Cricket Exodus? After Rohit & Kohli, Yet Another Senior Star on the Edge!

New Delhi(The Uttam Hindu): With the recent Test retirement of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, yet another veteran player, Mohammed Shami, might soon be walking out on the format. As BCCI is set to declare India's team for the five-match Test series against England, reports indicate Shami might be omitted from the team on the grounds of fitness.

According to Media reports, BCCI’s medical team has informed selectors that Shami, 34, is currently unable to bowl long spells—an essential requirement for pacers in English conditions. He is also unlikely to play all five Tests, prompting selectors to favor fully fit bowlers. A BCCI source said, “Shami bowls four overs in the IPL, but we’re unsure if he can deliver 10+ overs in a day. We can’t take that risk in England, where fast bowlers must endure long spells.”

Shami hasn’t played a Test since June 2023, when he featured in the World Test Championship final against Australia. Post that, injuries kept him out of red-ball cricket. Though he returned for limited-overs matches, his form has been underwhelming. In IPL 2025, he took just 6 wickets in 9 games with a high economy rate of 11.23. Given BCCI’s focus on building a younger Test team and the recent retirements of Ashwin, Rohit, and Kohli, Shami’s exclusion from the England tour could effectively mark the end of his Test career.