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After a long wait, the BCCI has formally announced Mohammed Shami as the replacement for the injured Jasprit Bumrah in the 15-men Indian squad for the T20 World Cup in Australia, which commences later this month.
Ace pacer Bumrah is currently out of action, nursing a back injury. The timeline for his recovery and comeback is still unknown. Shami also recently recovered from COVID-19 and passed a fitness test at the NCA before earning a berth in Team India's squad.
Fans took note of Mohammed Shami's inclusion in the Indian T20 World Cup squad and expressed their views by sharing hilarious memes on social media. The development evoked a divided reaction from the fans, as some were happy with his selection, while a few felt Mohammed Siraj should have gotten the nod considering his current form.
Here are some of the best memes on the matter:
Mohammed Shami as Jasprit Bumrah's replacement; Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj back-ups
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) provided an official update on the subject with a statement that read:
"The All-India Senior Selection Committee has named Mohammed Shami as Jasprit Bumrah’s replacement in India’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup squad. Shami has reached Australia and will link up with the squad in Brisbane ahead of the warm-up matches.
"Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur have been named as backups and will travel to Australia shortly."
Mohammed Shami has already reached Brisbane, where he will link up with the rest of the squad ahead of India's first practice match against Australia on October 17. They are also slated to play another practice game on October 19 against New Zealand.
Since Shami is short on game time in the T20 format, featuring in both matches will offer him a chance to get into the groove quickly before the mega tournament.
India squad for T20 World Cup 2022: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami
