India's star batsman Mohammed Shami will miss the first match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy against Delhi. It has been revealed that Bengal have decided to rest Shami for the upcoming match, scheduled to be played on Saturday, December 21 in Hyderabad.

Veteran Indian batsman Mohammed Shami will be rested for Bengal's Vijay Hazare Trophy opener against Delhi in Hyderabad on Saturday, the Bengal Cricket Association announced on Thursday.

Shami, who last played for India in the 2023 ODI World Cup, recently returned to domestic cricket after a long injury layoff due to ankle surgery. He has been recovering at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru since then. While Shami made an impressive comeback, taking seven wickets to help Bengal to their first win of the season in the Ranji Trophy, he took nine wickets in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Hence, after this decision, the Amroha-based bowler's probable comeback in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT 2024-25) looks quite uncertain. Shami underwent an ankle surgery after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup. Since then, he has been on the mend and was expected to play for Team India during the Australia tour.

The Bengal team will start its season in the List A tournament with some great players. However, Shami has missed many matches this season due to a knee injury. Due to this, he did not travel to Australia for the BGT 2024-25 series.

However, on Wednesday, India's Test captain Rohit Sharma had said in Brisbane that Shami was suffering from swelling in his knee. He had also said Shami would not be considered unless he was "200% fit" and updates on his fitness status should ideally come from the National Cricket Academy (NCA).

Mohammed Shami started his comeback phase by playing for Bengal in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT 2024). However, recent developments regarding his knee seem to have hampered his comeback chances for India. With a few days left for the start of the upcoming fourth Test, also known as ‘Boxing Day’, Shami may still have a chance to fully recover in time to take the field in Melbourne.

Besides, there have also been reports that the leading wicket-taker of the 2023 World Cup may now target the white-ball formats with the Champions Trophy 2025 and the Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) to make his much-awaited comeback in high-intensity cricket.