Gujarat Titans urged to carefully consider RTM option for Mohammed Shami: A look at his performances for India

Former India cricketer Robin Uthappa has advised the 2022 champions Gujarat Titans to make strategic use of their Right to Match (RTM) option on star pacer Mohammed Shami, who secured the Purple Cap during their victorious campaign in the 2023 edition.

"Yes, 100 percent. I wouldn't want Shami to play anywhere else because I love how he bowls at the Narendra Modi Stadium. I think he bowls exceptionally well there and that's given him a lot of confidence in his white-ball cricket as well," Uthappa said on JioCinema.

Uthappa asserted playing at Narendra Modi Stadium has helped Shami to improve his game which has worked well for the Titans and Team India both in the recent years.

"I think that only has amplified his red-ball bowling as well. So from the perspective of how he plays for himself and for his franchise, and also for Indian cricket, from all those different perspectives, I prefer him to play here at the Gujarat Titans," Uthappa added.

Shami missed the last season of IPL due to injury, however, after his surgery, he made a sensational comeback in the Ranji Trophy recently. He claimed seven wickets on his comeback game against Madhya Pradesh to help Bengal claim a register win.

However, he recently missed out on the Border-Gavaskar Trophy squad due to a lack of match fitness. However, after bowling 19 and 24.2 overs across two innings in the Ranji Trophy, Shami gave a final audition to make a last-minute entry into the squad.

Meanwhile, if included in the squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Shami's experience would be invaluable, particularly given India's inexperienced pace attack. The bowling line-up features two senior pacers, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, adding to it promising talents such as Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Akash Deep.