Former captain Sourav Ganguly urged Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir to bring Mohammed Shami back into the side after South Africa won the first Test in Kolkata by 30 runs on Sunday, November 16. The Cricket Association of Bengal CAB president opined that Gambhir should have faith in the experienced pace trio of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, and Mohammed Siraj.
Shami's last appearance for India in the red-ball format was the World Test Championship WTC final in 2023 against Australia. He has played the two white-ball formats for the Men in Blue this year but a Test comeback has remained elusive. The right-arm seamer has been performing well for Bengal in the ongoing Ranji Trophy, as he has accounted for 18 wickets in four matches so far.
Ganguly hoped that India would play on good pitches, where their batters will be able to put runs on the board, like they did during the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy earlier this year. He said that the Shubman Gill-led side should look to win Test matches in five days and not three.