India pacer Mohammed Shami marks upcoming home Test series against England for comeback

India pacer Mohammed Shami has said that he's eying upcoming five-Test home series against England to make a comeback after injury. Shami has been sidelined from competitive cricket since the ODI World Cup 2023 which had concluded on November 19. The pacer was the star performer for India in the quadrennial tournament, taking 24 wickets in 7 matches to help the hosts reach the final.

"I have started my training sessions and I believe I will be able to make a comeback in the England series," said Shami while speaking to the Times of India.

The 33-year-old also informed about the extent of his injury but said that the experts at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) are fine with his progress.

"There is slight stiffness in my ankle but that's fine. My rehabilitation is well on track and the medical experts at NCA are happy with my progress," he added.

Shami was also initially included in the squad for the South Africa Test series which got over about a week ago. Since his inclusion was subject to fitness, he was subsequently withdrawn from the series which ended in a 1-1 draw. India won the second Test in Cape Town by seven wickets after losing the first one by an innings and 32 runs.

Speaking on him not being able to be a part of the series, Shami said: "Unfortunately I missed it because of injury but I want to get back to competitive cricket as soon as possible. Hopefully you can see me back in action against England."

Owing to the injury, Shami has also not been included in the squad for the upcoming T20I series Afghanistan which starts on January 11. The three T20Is against Afghanistan at home are India's last international assignment in the format before the T20 World Cup scheduled to be played in June later this year.