Mohammed Shami's India Return Gets Backing After Bhuvneshwar Kumar's Recall: "Deserves An Opportunity"

Navdeep Saini backed Mohammed Shami for a return to the Indian team after Bhuvneshwar Kumar.© AP

Out-of-favour Indian pacer Navdeep Saini has backed fast bowler Mohammed Shami for a return to the national setup, drawing inspiration from fellow veteran Bhuvneshwar Kumar's recent recall. Bhuvneshwar earned a long-awaited comeback to the Indian squad for the upcoming five-match T20I series in New Zealand, having last represented the country at the 2022 T20 World Cup. Speaking to Revsportz recently, Saini hailed Bhuvneshwar's return as a source of motivation for cricketers striving to break back into the national side.

"Bhuvi bhaiya is a huge source of motivation for players like us who are trying to make a comeback into the side. He is a highly capable bowler who has served Indian cricket tremendously and won matches single-handedly. He's a game-changing bowler. Even though he has been out of the team for the last four years, his performances have remained exceptional, whether in domestic cricket or the IPL," Saini told RevSportz.

The 33-year-old felt Bhuvneshwar's comeback was long overdue, arguing that the veteran pacer had consistently delivered strong performances in both domestic cricket and the IPL since his last outing for India.

"If you look at the last two IPL seasons, he has been one of the best bowlers. There were talks that he might not get selected, but I always felt he deserved an opportunity. If he can make a comeback, it shows that anyone can work hard, perform consistently and earn another chance," he added.

BHUVANESHWAR KUMAR IS BACK TO THE NATIONAL DUTY Bhuvaneshwar Kumar is back in Indian National team after 4 year's. He was backed by Royal Challengers Banglore and won 2 back to back trophy. Bhuvi was providing powerplay and death over bowling in IPL. Bhuvaneshwar has played 87 Match, Grabbed 90 wickets in which 2 times takan 5 wickets. Bhuvi was much needed in ODI setup but not to worry as we will be going to witness his Swing supremacy in T20I https://t.co/AbphEOkR8Z

— Cricket Virus (@Cricketvirus18) October 6, 2026

Saini also pointed to veteran pacer Shami's case, arguing that the experienced fast bowler has been overlooked despite delivering strong performances in domestic cricket. He felt Shami deserved an opportunity to return to the national side, much like Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

"Another player I'd like to talk about is Shami bhaiya. He has also served Indian cricket for a long time and is capable of winning matches on his own. I feel his name should have been there as well, although I don't know why he wasn't picked. He has been toiling hard in domestic cricket and deserves an opportunity too," Saini said.

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