Shami at the centre of three-way tug ahead of IPL 2026

Mohammed Shami, in the news lately for non-selection in the Indian team, is at the centre of a three-way dynamic ahead of the 2026 IPL season. There is interest from multiple franchises for the veteran pacer, and there may be a chance he will be traded to one of them. Last heard, SunRisers Hyderabad are weighing options on how to make the best use of the prevailing demand.

The 35-year-old pacer, the spearhead of the Indian attack for a long time in his 12-year international career, which includes 64 Tests, 108 ODIs and 25 T20Is, is being sought by Lucknow Super Giants, with as much keenness apparently shown by Delhi Capitals as well. It will now have to be seen how the SRH management handles the situation.

If the transaction were to go through, it would either be a one-way trade. A release into the auction pool is also a possibility but the former scenario of an all-cash trade appears more likely.

Shami was bought by SRH for Rs 10 crore at the last mega auction in Jeddah, but his returns last season were modest - just six wickets at an underwhelming average of 56.17 and an economy rate of 11.23, compared to his career figures of 28.19 and 8.63 respectively.

He has taken 133 wickets in 119 IPL games overall, with a major chunk of those coming during two stellar seasons for Gujarat Titans in 2022 and 2023, when he claimed a combined total of 48 wickets (20 and 28 respectively). He missed the entire IPL 2024 due to injury.

How serious Delhi Capitals' interest in Shami is can be gauged from Sourav Ganguly's recent comments on the pacer. "I'm sure the selectors are watching and there is communication between Mohammad Shami and the selectors. But if you ask me, in terms of fitness and skill, it's the Mohammad Shami we know of.

"So, I really don't see any reason why he can't keep playing Test matches, one-day cricket and T20 cricket for India. Because that skill is enormous," Ganguly, part of the Delhi Capitals management, was quoted as saying in the media a few days ago.

Shami has not played an international match since the Champions Trophy final in Dubai in March this year, and his fitness status became a hot topic, with chief selector Ajit Agarkar and the player himself involved in some sort of public rhetoric. Shami has proved his fitness in the first-class matches for Bengal this season, claiming 15 wickets in the last three Ranji games.

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