New Delhi: Troubled India speedster Mohammed Shami Sunday failed the YoYo fitness test, prompting the selectors to summon rookie Delhi speedster Navdeep Saini for the one-off Test against Afghanistan, starting June 14.
“The All-India senior selection committee has named Saini as Shami’s replacement in the Indian Test team for the upcoming Test against Afghanistan. The announcement came after Md. Shami failed to clear the fitness test at NCA, Bangalore,” the BCCI release stated.
The Indian team have set a standard parameter of clearing the Yo Yo test, which gives a measure of a player’s endurance and fitness. The current benchmark is 16.1 for the India senior team and A team. According to a senior BCCI official, Karun Nair and Hardik Pandya were the two best performers in the YoYo Test with scores of above 18.
The 27-year-old Shami has been injury-prone and of late troubled by allegations of domestic violence by his wife. Shami, who has 110 wickets from 30 Tests, was initially removed from the BCCI’s Central Contracts List before being re-inducted after he was given a clean chit by a BCCI internal probe committee. He also had a narrow escape in an accident before enduring a poor IPL.
Meanwhile, the Indian team management has requested India A fast bowlers Mohammed Siraj and Rajneesh Gurbani to attend the training sessions of the Indian team and bowl in the nets. A request was also made for Ankit Rajpoot, but the Uttar Pradesh fast bowler is unwell.
The BCCI also said that keeper-batsman Sanju Samson has also failed his fitness test and was replaced by former India U-19 captain Ishan Kishan, who had put up an impressive show for Mumbai Indians in the IPL.
Nair exudes confidence
Bangalore: Karun Nair says he is a much improved batsmen than he was two years ago and has his focus firmly set on his comeback Test against Afghanistan rather than the following A tour of the United Kingdom. “I have become fitter. For one-and-a-half years I have been out of the team and making efforts to improve my skills. I have worked on batting and fitness. I scored runs in domestic cricket. I know for myself, I am a better batsman than what I was two years ago,” said Nair ahead of the one-off Test beginning here Thursday. If Nair makes the playing eleven, it will be his first international appearance since the Test against Australia in March last year.
- Saini is currently one of the quickest red ball bowlers in domestic circuit
- The 25-year-old has so far played 31 first-class games, taking 96 wickets
- Sanju Samson has also failed his fitness test and was replaced by former India U-19 captain Ishan Kishan