"A lot of hard work, commitment and dedication"- Mohammed Shami gets emotional after replacing Bumrah in World Cup squad

India will open their World Cup campaign on Monday with a warm-up match against the defending champions, Australia. The game is currently underway. And veteran pacer Mohammed Shami also joined the team and was seen practising at the net ahead of the warm-up game.

Shami replaced the injured Jasprit Bumrah, who was ruled out of the competition due to a back injury. There were many doubts related to the availability of Shami. He was tested COVID-positive last month and didn't feature in the home series against Australia and South Africa.

Thus, the pacer's inclusion was doubtful because Mohammed Siraj was another option that India had. He also did well against South Africa in a three-match ODI series and ended up being the "Player of the Series" with five wickets in three games.

However, Shami was given a green signal after getting clearance from the medical team at the National Cricket Academy (NCA), and he was picked ahead of Siraj because of his experience. Hence, it was not an easy journey for Shami to come back into the T20I team after a long gap.

The pacer also opened up on the chance he got after such a long time. Notably, Shami last played a T20I game for India in the last edition of the T20 World Cup in the UAE. He took to Twitter and shared his emotions.

India will play against Australia on Monday, and then they will face New Zealand on Wednesday (October 19) in their second warm-up game. The Men in Blue will open their campaign against archrivals Pakistan on October 23 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.