Team India’s 10-wicket loss in the pink-ball Test against Australia at Adelaide has prompted calls for changes in the team. Rookie pacer Harshit Rana went wicket-less in Adelaide, with his selection putting head coach Gautam Gambhir and skipper Rohit Sharma in the line of fire. Some even allege that Harshit’s selection in the XI was down to his Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) connection with Harshit. When former India captain Kapil Dev was asked about the controversy regarding selection matter, he gave a rather intriguing response.

Kapil Dev, one of India’s legendary cricketers, feels it is not his responsibility to judge such calls made by the team management. Hence, his opinion doesn’t make a difference.

“I am a nobody. How can I judge? There are people up there who have the responsibility to decide who should be in the team,” he told reporters on the sidelines of Vishwa Samudra Open, a PGTI event set to begin at the Delhi Golf Club.

Kapil expressed his confidence on the team management’s ability to select the best possible team and get the work done in Australia.

“We shouldn’t talk. My former colleagues are sitting there, and I hope they will do a good job,” he said.

India vs Australia 3rd Test

With the series 1-1, India face a daunting task ahead of them as the players group together for the third match of the series in Brisbane. Known for producing daunting bouncy pitches, handling Australian pacers at the Gabba is expected to be a tricky task for Indian batters.

India also have to get the maximum possible wins out of the next three matches of the series if they are to qualify for the ICC World Test Championship final. At present, India are placed third in the points table, with South Africa and Australia occupying the top 2 spots.

Ace seamer Shaheen Afridi etched his name in the history book by becoming Pakistan’s first bowler to take 100 wickets in each format of international cricket. In the first innings of the opening T20I against South Africa in Durban here on Tuesday night, Shaheen struck once in the powerplay, then in the middle phase and once towards the end to complete a three-wicket haul and arrive at the rare feat. With a three-wicket haul, Shaheen completed 100 T20I wickets and became the first Pakistan bowler to have 100 wickets in each format. Apart from T20Is, the 24-year-old left-arm seamer boasts 112 scalps in ODIs and 116 in Test cricket.

With his record-shattering spell, he also the became third Pakistani bowler to achieve 100 T20I wickets, behind Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan.

Shaheen hit the three-digit figure milestone in his 74th T20I game for Pakistan. He became the second-fastest to take 100 T20I wickets for Pakistan after scorching pacer Haris Rauf, who achieved the feat in 71 T20I matches.

Overall, Shaheen became the youngest to achieve the feat and joined the ranks of New Zealand’s Tim Southee, Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan, and Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga.

Coming to the match, Shaheen cleaned up Rassie van der Dussen for a golden duck with a pinpoint yorker. He came back to send in-form David Miller before he could bring up a well-deserved century.

In the last, he trapped Nqabayomzi Peter in front of the stumps to claim his 100th T20I wicket and enter the exclusive club. Shaheen ended the first T20I with figures of 3/22 in his four-over spell.

Despite Shaheen’s heroics, Pakistan fell to a narrow 11-run defeat. While chasing a challenging total of 184, skipper Mohammad Rizwan found no support from the other end. His 74 drove Pakistan’s score but it wasn’t enough to take the visitors past the finishing line.

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With the Indian team in desperate need of bowling reinforcements in Australia, the wait for veteran pacer Mohammed Shami to join the team continues. It looked like Shami could be ready to feature in the final two Tests of the series but his fitness concerns have prevented the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) from flying him Down Under anytime soon. India captain Rohit Sharma was asked about Shami’s status after the conclusion of the pink-ball Test in Adelaide. Rohit kept the door open for Shami but refused to give any timeline.

The India captain also suggested that the pacer is dealing with a swollen knee problem as he prepares to regain match fitness in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for Bengal.

A report in the Indian Express claimed that Shami has undergone a fresh fitness test which indicates that the pacer isn’t yet ready for 5-day cricket. Hence a flight to Australia anytime soon can be ruled out. But, Shami will feature in Bengal’s quarterfinal against Baroda at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, where his fitness and knee issues could be put under another test.

There are doubts about whether Shami is ready to bowl lengthy spells in the red-ball format, considering he is facing swollen knee issues even as he is bowling 4 overs for Bengal’s T20 side.

Since making a comeback to competitive cricket, Shami has featured in one Ranji Trophy and has also played in each of Bengal’s seven matches so far in the SMAT, shining both with the ball and the bat.

What Rohit Sharma said about Mohammed Shami’s situation

Rohit didn’t sound too optimistic about Shami’s potential return, highlighting the knee issues that the veteran pacer continues to face. The India captain asserted that he doesn’t want to rush Shami back into the team unless he is assured of his 100% fitness.

“We want to be more than 100% sure with him because it has been a long time. We don’t want to put pressure on him to come here and do the job for the team. There are some professionals monitoring, we will take a call based on what those guys feel. They are the ones watching him every game, how he pulls up after the game, after bowling four overs, standing for 20 overs. But the door is open for him to come and play anytime,” Rohit had said.