Shami will play no part in the limited overs series against England

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

India will be without the services of pace bowler Mohammed Shami for the ODI and Twenty20 series against England next month due to a knee injury.

Shami sustained the injury in the third Test against England in Mohali last month and will not have made a sufficient recovery in time for the limited overs portion of the series.

It is yet another setback for the 26-year-old as he underwent surgery on his left knee after the 2015 World Cup and spent nearly a year on the sidelines.

With Shami out, it could result in seamer Ishant Sharma making his ODI comeback, but India may opt for Barinder Sran instead.

With batsmen Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane also listed as doubtful, it could present Karun Nair, who made a triple century in the fifth Test against England in Chennai earlier this month, and Lokesh Rahul to make their presence felt.

If India’s batting stocks are seriously in need of a boost, they may even call up opener Shikhar Dhawan, who has not played ODI cricket since January and Twenty20 cricket since March.

Meanwhile, it remains unclear whether India will rest frontline spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja after the gruelling five-Test series. In fact, they employed this tactic when playing against New Zealand earlier this year.

The limited overs series between India and England begins with an ODI in Pune on January 15.