Pacer Mukesh Kumar and all-rounder Shahbaz Ahamad will need more time to recover from their injury as Bengal gear up for the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy. Both IPL stars have been left out of the initial 17-member squad for the home game against Uttarakhand starting October 15.While Mukesh has almost recovered his hamstring, Shahbaz’s timeline for the right shoulder injury is longer. Sources in the know told Sportskeeda that Mukesh is likely to be in the team for the subsequent match versus Gujarat. Shahbaz, meanwhile, won’t be available before the third or even the fourth round of fixtures. Both are rehabilitating at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.Mukesh Kumar went off the field with a hamstring issue midway through the first innings of East Zone’s 2025-26 Duleep Trophy opener against North. The 32-year-old returned wicketless in his 14.5 overs. He picked up three scalps in the first unofficial Test against England Lions in the summer. He last played for India in a T20I series versus Zimbabwe in July 2024.Shahbaz Ahamad, who has featured in 3 ODIs and 2 T20Is, hurt his right shoulder after just two matches in the Bengal Pro T20 League 2025. Captaining the Shrachi Rarh Tigers, the 30-year-old scored just 12 runs and grabbed a couple of wickets. Batter Sumanta Gupta replaced him as skipper. The left-hander went under the knife in Mumbai in June itself. Incidentally, Shahbaz missed the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the second half of the Ranji Trophy last season due to a sports hernia operation.On the other hand, Mukesh played just a solitary match for Sobisco Smashers Malda. He struck off his very first delivery and finished with two for 25 from four overs.Both had underwhelming performances in IPL 2025 as well. Mukesh took 12 wickets from the same number of games as the Delhi Capitals (DC) tapered off towards the end and finished just outside the playoff spots. Playing for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Shahbaz had just one wicket and nine runs to his name from three outings.Mohammad Shami and Akash Deep eye India comebackMohammad Shami was India's joint-highest wicket-taker in 2025 Champions Trophy with 9 scalpsUnder the scanner against Uttarakhand will be veteran India pacer Mohammad Shami. The 35-year-old is arriving in the city on Sunday, September 12, and will join the Bengal camp at Eden Gardens from Monday.Shami hasn't played for the country since winning the 2025 Champions Trophy in March. Against North Zone, he picked up just a single wicket from 34 overs across both essays. He was ignored for the big-ticket England tour and has been left out of the ongoing two-Test series against the West Indies. With many hinting at the end of his road in international cricket, it will be on Shami to hit the ground running and exhibit his trademark rhythm and wicket-taking ability. View this post on Instagram Instagram PostAkash Deep will also have a point to prove after being left out of the West Indies assignment due to a back injury he sustained through the gruelling English summer.Sportskeeda has also learnt that middle-order batter Saurabh Kumar Singh has returned to Bengal from Railways and will straightaway be thrown into action against Uttarakhand. The 28-year-old, who also bowls part-time medium pace, will be slotted in at No. 7. He notched up a few hundreds for Kidderpore Sporting Club in CAB's 1st Division League last season.Bengal playing XI versus Uttarakhand, as per sources:Abhimanyu Easwaran (c), Sudip Chatterjee, Sudip Kumar Gharami, Anustup Majumdar, Abishek Porel (vc/wk), Sumanta Gupta, Saurabh Kumar Singh, Vishal Bhati, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Akash Deep, Mohammad ShamiThe other teams in Group C are Tripura, Railways, Assam, Services and Haryana.