India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak confirms Shami "completely fit" ahead of second ODI against England

Cuttack (Odisha) [India], February 8 (ANI): India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak on Saturday confirmed that star Men in Blue seamer Mohammed Shami is "completely fit" ahead of the second ODI match of the series against England in Cuttack.

The Men in Blue will lock horns against England in the second match of the ODI series on Sunday in Cuttuck.

Shami made his first appearance for the Men in Blue in the third T20I game against England since the ODI World Cup 2023 final. In the five-match T20I series against England, Shami featured in only two games, where he bagged three wickets at an average of 16.67.

In the first ODI match of the series against the Three Lions, the 34-year-old bagged one wicket in his eight-over spell.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Kotak also reflected on whether Arshdeep Singh will appear in the second game of the 50-over series and said that the head coach and captain will decide.

"Shami is absolutely fit, he is completely fit, and if Arshdeep gets a chance, the same answer again, that head coach and captain can decide," Kotak told reporters.

When asked about talisman India bowler Jasprit Bumrah's fitness, the batting coach said that he is not aware of the 31-year-old's scans.

"Not aware about Bumrah's scans, so that will be obvious our doctor, or physio will know about that," he added.

In the last innings of the fifth Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 against Australia at Sydney, the speedster didn't bowl a single ball as he went for scans and was advised by the Australian doctors not to participate in the remainder of the Sydney Test.

Following the advice from the medical experts, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) decided the Indian spearhead should rest for at least five weeks (the Sydney Test finished on January 5) after which he will undergo another scan.

Earlier in the first match of the ODI series, Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer's mouthwatering fifties helped the Men in Blue clinch a four-wicket triumph over England at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur.

With the magnificent win in Nagpur, Team India took a 1-0 lead over the Three Lions in the ODI series.

India's updated squad for ODI series against England: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)