Irfan Pathan Gave Statement Regarding Mohammed Shami Return to India Squad: India’s lethal fast bowler Mohammed Shami played an important role in making Team India champion in the Champions Trophy 2025. At the same time, now he is not able to return to the Indian team. Shami was earlier out of the team due to injury, but now he has completely regained his fitness and is also performing well in domestic cricket. Despite this, the selectors are not giving him a chance. Irfan Pathan has expressed a lot of disappointment over the non-selection of Mohammed Shami in the Indian team. He scolded the selectors for this and also told Shami the last way to make a comeback in Team India.

Irfan Pathan gave statement regarding Mohammed Shami

While talking on his YouTube channel, Irfan Pathan said, ‘What is his future? He is not a player who came yesterday, played a few matches and left. He has taken 450-500 international wickets, which are huge numbers. If you have taken more than 400 wickets and then you are dropped from the team and questions are raised on your fitness – it happens to everyone. As long as you play cricket, you have to keep proving yourself.

Talking further, he said, ‘Shami has already bowled 200 overs. After bowling 200 overs, if it is a matter of fitness, then the fitness is already visible and what needs to be improved, only the selection committee knows what they are thinking? If I were in his place, I would have gone to play IPL and created a stir. I would have taken the new ball and performed at that level. There is talk of domestic cricket performance, but when IPL comes and you show your old rhythm and fitness, then no one can ignore you. The whole world watches IPL. If you perform there, you regain your place in the squad. I believe that doors should not be closed for them.

Fast bowler Mohammed Shami has not been able to make a comeback in the Indian squad selected by BCCI against New Zealand. Former cricketer Irfan Pathan expressed his displeasure on this and raised questions on the working methods of the selection committee. Pathan said that till when will Shami have to prove his fitness and ignoring him is beyond comprehension.

Mohammad Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana have been selected as fast bowling options in the Indian squad for the next ODI series. Shami has been out of Team India since Champions Trophy 2025, now Irfan Pathan has come out in his support.

Shami’s ability…

Irfan Pathan said on his YouTube channel, “The center of biggest discussion is Mohammed Shami, what is his future? He is not a name who comes yesterday and goes out after playing a few matches. He has taken 450-500 wickets in international cricket, which is a huge number. If you have taken 400 wickets, get dropped and still questions start being raised on fitness. In the game of cricket, everyone has to prove themselves, but Mohammed Shami’s It is not right to doubt the ability.”

Targeted on selection committee

Irfan Pathan further said that after returning from injury, Mohammed Shami has bowled 200 overs, this many overs are enough to prove his fitness. Pathan said, “What more does he need to prove than this? If Shami still needs to prove his fitness, only the selection committee knows what it is thinking.”

Indian squad for New Zealand ODI series: Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (wk), Shreyas Iyer (subject to fitness clearance), Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal.

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Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan believes that Shubman Gill can become the next Virat Kohli of Team India. Gill is currently the captain of India’s Test and ODI team, and he is being seen as the next superstar player of Team India. He has taken the number-4 position in the Test format, where Virat Kohli used to play.

Irfan Pathan told how Virat Kohli was linked with Sachin Tendulkar in the early days of his career. Similarly, now Shubman Gill is being linked with Virat Kohli.

Irfan Pathan said, “Gill is very talented. Comparisons will always be made. Virat was compared to Sachin, who has scored 25-30 thousand runs. I think Gill has the ability to do this. He can hit many types of shots. The more responsibility and challenges he gets as a cricketer, the better he will get as a cricketer. I have seen, he is always ready for cricket.”

Before the Indian all-rounder, England’s veteran spinner Monty Panesar had expressed doubt that Shubman Gill would hardly ever be able to replace Virat Kohli in Team India. On the other hand, after becoming the captain, Shubman Gill said that even after becoming the captain, there will be no impact on his bonding with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.

This statement of Irfan Pathan came at a time when, despite being the captain of the ODI and Test team, Shubman Gill has been dropped from the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup 2026. Despite being the vice-captain of the T20 team, Gill has been left out of the World Cup squad.

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The T20 form of India’s young batsman Shubman Gill is constantly under question. Getting out on the first ball in the second T20 against South Africa has further increased his difficulty. Gill, who returned to the T20 team after a long time, was also given the responsibility of vice-captain, but due to not scoring runs, the pressure is now clearly visible. Former cricketer Irfan Pathan has also expressed concern about his declining form.

Irfan Pathan raised questions

Before the Asia Cup 2025, Gill made a strong comeback after being out of the T20 team for more than a year. However, since then he has been able to score only 263 runs in 14 matches. During this period his average also remained around 24. Not only this, his biggest score is also only 47 runs.

Seeing his declining form, former Team India all-rounder Irfan Pathan clearly said that Gill’s form is a “big concern” before the upcoming T20 World Cup. Irfan wrote on social media, “Shubman Gill’s form is a matter of concern before the T20 World Cup. Hopefully he will get into rhythm soon, otherwise Team India may be in trouble.”

Sanju Samson was thrown out and got the responsibility

Gill’s return brought about a big change in the team’s combination. To make room for Gill, Sanju Samson, who was opening well, was sent down and later dropped from the playing eleven. The team management expressed confidence in Gill, but now this decision may prove costly for India. The opening pair of Abhishek Sharma and Samson was doing well earlier, hence Gill getting continuous opportunities has now become a topic of discussion.

Anchor role vs attacking approach

It is also clear that Gill cannot bat “smoky” like Abhishek Sharma does. India’s new T20 philosophy is completely based on fearless attack, where big shots are expected in every over. Gill can play the role of anchor, which Kohli used to do earlier. However, due to the team now having batting till number 8, the importance of this role has reduced.

Less time in T20 World Cup

India has to play a total of 10 matches before the T20 World Cup 2026. In such a situation, the team has less time to try the players and find the right combination. Gill’s poor form is becoming a big challenge for the team’s strategy.

IND vs SA: In the second ODI played in Raipur, Team India had to face defeat despite making a big score of 359 runs. Heavy dew and wet ball increased the problems for the Indian bowlers, but the biggest debate was about the slow batting of Ravindra Jadeja. Former all-rounder Irfan Pathan raised direct questions on Jadeja’s ‘intent’ and said that his innings pushed India back.

Where did Jadeja go?

Team India had made a great start to its innings. Virat Kohli and Ruturaj Gaikwad played balanced batting and scored centuries and gave a steady start to India. In the end, captain KL Rahul also played a stormy innings of unbeaten 66 runs in just 43 balls, taking India’s score beyond 350. After that, Jadeja, who came to bat, scored only 24 unbeaten runs in 27 balls.

Irfan Pathan’s statement

Irfan Pathan looked a bit angry about Jadeja’s slow innings. Irfan said in his show ‘Seedhi Baat’, “Everyone was scoring runs at a fast strike rate, but Jadeja was playing at a strike rate of 88. Playing so slowly in such a strong position hurts the team. Jadeja’s intention was not visible at all.”

He further said that this was not just something he said later, but he had also given the same warning during the commentary.

South Africa showed strength

After India’s batting, it seemed that the match was in hand, but dew changed the whole story. South Africa started cautiously and then Markram, Bavuma, Britzke and Brewis troubled the Indian bowlers a lot.

Along with this, Pathan also praised the South African bowlers. He told that the African bowlers stopped India’s run-flow by giving only 55 runs between 39 and 49 overs. Pathan further said, “If India had reached around 370, the situation could have been different, but South Africa bowled well in the last 10 overs.”

Last Wednesday, the Indian team lost the second ODI by 4 wickets. Team India had scored 358 runs while playing first, but South Africa had set a new record by successfully chasing the target. Now the series is tied at one each, and the series winner will be decided in the last ODI on 6 December. Now former cricketer Irfan Pathan has raised questions on the performance of Ravindra Jadeja.

The Indian team had scored 358 runs in the second ODI match. Actually, at one time a score of 400 runs seemed possible for Team India, but in the last 10 overs the team could score only 74 runs. Jadeja played an innings of 24 runs in 27 balls in the second ODI. Irfan Pathan has criticized this innings of Jadeja.

Irfan Pathan said on his YouTube channel, “I saw a problem. Ravindra Jadeja’s innings, in which he scored 24 runs in 27 balls, seemed very slow. During the commentary, we were saying that this could cause loss to Team India and in the end, that is what happened. If you are in a strong position by scoring above 300 runs and everyone is playing at a strike rate of more than 100, while your strike rate is 88. It becomes clear that there was a lack of urgency in that innings, but Jadeja’s intention was disappointing.

Jadeja could hit only 2 fours in his innings of 24 runs, in which there was not a single six. The result was that the century innings of Virat Kohli (102 runs) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (105 runs) went in vain. Irfan Pathan also said that Jadeja’s inability to increase the pace of runs during the Indian innings proved disappointing for the Indian team.

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After the defeat at the hands of Australia in Melbourne, former cricketer Irfan Pathan raised questions on the changed strategies of Team India. The former cricketer also expressed concern over sending Harshit Rana before Shivam Dubey with the changed order of Suryakumar Yadav and Sanju Samson. According to him, the team should not think so much about left and right combinations. He also warned about Arshdeep Singh that if he gets less opportunities, he will play only to prove himself instead of improving.

Expressing his displeasure over the experiment in batting order, Irfan Pathan said on his YouTube channel, “Harshit Rana came to bat above Shivam Dubey, if this is a continuation of the left and right combination, then I do not agree with this. Shivam Dubey is a better batsman than both of them, he batted well in the Asia Cup and could have played here too. It was possible that he too would have got out early, but he should get more chances.”

May the strength not be lost – Pathan

Pathan said, “Sanju Samson came to bat at number 3, he was the first opener and then started batting down and then came to number three. Suryakumar Yadav, who was playing at number three, came to number four. See, it is important that the number three position is fixed for Surya, there is no need to come down from there. If Sanju goes up and down so much, then he might become so loose, that the strength that lies with the flexibility. So…it’s over.” However, Pathan also admitted that in T20, except the openers, other batsmen have to be flexible.

Irfan Pathan also admitted that Sanju Samson is getting full support from the team, that is why he is able to play even after Shubman Gill comes into the playing 11 as an opener. But the former cricketer feels that his batting order should also be fixed. He said, “If you make so many changes then it is not right, he had scored 3 centuries while opening. He also scored runs with the old ball in the lower order. You need mental strength and support. But these things change when you have 3-4 failures.”

Targeted at Shubman Gill

Taking aim at Gill, Pathan said, “He has been brought back to the opening after removing Sanju, he will have to perform consistently. A batsman like Yashasvi Jaiswal is not playing T20, is not playing ODI for India. Such a capable player, who can score 200 in ODI and can also score a century in T20. His absence is definitely a cause of trouble.”

Pathan also raised questions that due to Sanju Samson coming third and Suryakumar Yadav coming fourth, Tilak Verma is forced to come at number 5.

Questions raised on Abhishek Sharma also

In the second T20, it was only Abhishek Sharma who batted well. He scored 68 runs in 37 balls with the help of 2 sixes and 8 fours. However, Pathan also raised questions on his game awareness. He said, “He and Harshit Rana had a half-century partnership, it happened in about 47 balls. Out of this, 33 balls were played by Harshit Rana, although he did his job and did what is expected from a lower order batsman. But here it was the responsibility of Abhishek that in this partnership most of the strikes were with Harshit. There you had to take more responsibility.”

Shubman Gill has flopped badly on the Australian tour. He could score only 43 runs in 3 matches of the ODI series and now his poor form continues in T20 also. He remained unbeaten after scoring 37 runs in Canberra, but was out after scoring only 5 runs in the second T20 played in Melbourne. So far he has been able to score only 84 runs in 5 matches on the Australian tour. Irfan Pathan, who was a part of Team India that won the 2007 T20 World Cup, has given an ultimatum to Gill.

Sanju replaced Samson

Talking about Shubman Gill on his YouTube channel, Irfan Pathan said that he replaced Sanju Samson after coming back to T20. Samson, who scored three centuries in T20 as an opener. Pathan told that Gill has leadership abilities, has also scored a lot of runs in IPL, but now he will have to do well.

The former Indian all-rounder said that Gill has not been able to score even 200 runs in the last 10 innings, so there is bound to be pressure on him. Pathan said in sharp words that Gill is getting both opportunities and support, hence he will have to score runs.

Yashasvi Jaiswal is ready

Irfan Pathan said, “There is Yashasvi Jaiswal, who is the best player in T20. We have seen him playing with a strike rate of 160 in IPL. Gill will not perform despite getting opportunities and Jaiswal will remain sitting. In such a situation, there will be pressure on Gill as well as the team. Gill will have to do well continuously, otherwise there is Jaiswal, who is not playing T20 and ODI right now.”

Pathan even said that it is shameful for a talented player like Jaiswal to remain sitting on the bench. A player who has scored 200 in ODI.

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India vs Australia T20 series is starting from Friday, 29 October. Team India, which is coming after winning the Asia Cup under the captaincy of Suryakumar Yadav, would now like to clean up Australia in its own home. Before the start of the series, former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has selected the playing eleven of Team India for the first T20 match, in which he has not included Kuldeep Yadav, the top wicket taker of the Asia Cup.

Irfan Pathan chose playing eleven

Irfan Pathan has kept the same players in the first 4 positions in the Indian playing eleven, who are playing regularly in the same positions. He chose Shubhman Gill and Abhishek Sharma as openers and captain Suryakumar Yadav at number 3, whose form has question marks. Pathan has placed Tilak Verma at the fourth position, who won the hearts of entire India by playing an unbeaten inning of 69 runs in the Asia Cup final.

Since Hardik Pandya will not be there in the T20 series against Australia, the number-5 batting position has opened for Sanju Samson. Shivam Dubey will contribute with strong batting as well as bowling. Axar Patel will play the role of spin bowling all-rounder.

Showed confidence in Harshit Rana

Irfan Pathan says that by taking 4 wickets in Sydney ODI, Harshit Rana has staked his claim to be included in the T20 playing eleven. Harshit also contributed with the bat by playing an innings of 24 runs in Adelaide ODI. As the second spin bowling option, he has chosen Varun Chakraborty and left out Kuldeep Yadav. Kuldeep was the highest wicket taker in the Asia Cup with 17 wickets.

Harshit Rana will be playing the role of the third fast bowler. Whereas Irfan Pathan has given place to Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh among the lead fast bowlers.

Irfan Pathan selected Indian playing eleven: Abhishek Sharma, Shubhman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Tilak Verma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dubey, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Varun Chakraborty.

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Irfan Pathan is celebrating his 41st birthday today. All-rounder Irfan achieved a lot in his short cricket career. You will be surprised to know that Irfan played his last international match at the age of 28, he made his international debut in 2003. Today he does commentary and also pulls Pakistan’s leg from time to time. But even when he played cricket, he troubled Pakistan a lot.

Coming from Baroda, Irfan Pathan started his international career with the 2003-2004 Australia tour. Pathan impressed a lot on this tour, his swing and speed attracted people’s attention. After this series, Irfan’s place was confirmed in Team India. After this, everyone was waiting for the Pakistan tour, which was happening after a long time.

Pakistan had made fun of Irfan Pathan

In 2004, when the Indian team went on Pakistan tour to play ODI and Test series, everyone was waiting for the performance of Irfan Pathan, because he had dominated at that time. Irfan was then being considered a big threat to Pakistan. But at that time the coach of Pakistan team was Javed Miandad, who was famous for his loudness. While talking to the media, he made fun of Irfan Pathan, he said that bowlers like Irfan can be found in the streets of Pakistan.

Irfan Pathan wreaked havoc on Pakistan

Miandad soon got the answer because Irfan Pathan wreaked havoc in Pakistan. Pathan took 8 wickets in 3 ODI matches. After this he took 12 wickets in the 3-match Test series. After this, Irfan again visited Pakistan in 2006, when in Karachi he created history by taking a hat-trick in the very first over of the Test. He became the first bowler to take a hat-trick in the first over in Test.

Irfan Pathan’s cricket career

In his 9-year international career, Irfan Pathan played 29 Tests, 120 ODIs and 24 T20 matches. Apart from this, he played 122 first class and 181 T20 matches. Irfan Pathan has been a part of Chennai Super Kings, Delhi Capitals, Punjab Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rising Pune Supergiants teams in IPL.

• 29 Test: 1105 runs, 100 wickets
• 120 ODI: 1544 runs, 173 wickets
• 24 T20 International: 172 runs, 28 wickets