Recently appointed Indian selector RP Singh, who has joined the Indian selection board headed by Ajit Agarkar, was seen busy chatting with Bengal fast bowler Mohammed Shami ahead of the South Africa tour.
Mohammed Shami is absent from the India national cricket team since the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The 35-year-old Indian fast bowler had claimed a few days ago that there was no communication from the selectors or the team management regarding his neglect.
He has had a major feud with current Indian chief selector Ajit Agarkar, who mentioned that Shami was ignored due to his lack of fitness, and the domestic season had started even before the West Indies Test.
Selector RP Singh had a long conversation with Mohammed Shami
According to Sportskeeda, newly appointed Indian selector RP Singh reached out to Team India’s veteran fast bowler Shami for a long meeting at the Eden Gardens during the Ranji Trophy match between Bengal and Gujarat.
Singh had joined the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee last month; However, the meeting came just days after Shami and Agarkar sparred in the media over the bowler’s omission from the Indian Test team.
He was one of the notable players absent during India’s three-match ODI tour of Australia, despite being India’s joint-highest wicket-taker in previous 50-over tournaments and their all-time leading wicket-taker in ICC 50-over tournaments.
Ajit Agarkar had given the reason for ignoring Mohammed Shami
Mohammed Shami had claimed that the Indian selectors had unfairly overlooked him, as he was fit in every way to take part in the series against England, West Indies and Australia. Reacting to such comments, Agarkar suggested that he has been dropped from the team due to fitness concerns.
He said he was always a call away from any player in the Indian dugout, as he had interacted with the veteran fast bowler several times in the last few months. He praised Shami as an incredible performer for India and said that if he had been fit he would definitely have made the flight to England.
Mohammed Shami’s Ranji Trophy performance in 2025-26
Shami shone with the ball in the opening match for Bengal as he took 7 wickets in the opening match of Ranji Trophy 2025-26 against Uttarakhand. This legendary fast bowler was also chosen as the player of the match for the first game, which Bengal won.
They are currently playing against Gujarat at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, after being bowled out for 279 runs after batting first. Only Abhishek Porel and Sumant Gupta scored half-centuries, as Gujarat collapsed to 107/7 on the second day. Shahbaz Ahmed took four wickets, and Shami bowled a spell of 2/34 from his 14 overs.
Mohammed Shami has also been dropped from the India A squad for the upcoming series against South Africa A, which means that he will definitely be ruled out of the upcoming series against South Africa as well.
Also read: Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma final in India’s 2027 World Cup squad: “Whether they score runs or not…”
