Mohammed Shami knows what it takes to recover from a career-threatening injury. After hurting his ankle following the 2023 World Cup, he endured a long road to recovery, including rehabilitation and regaining match fitness, before returning to the Indian team. Shami featured in the 2025 Champions Trophy but is yet to return to the India Blues, and understands how difficult it can be to rebuild momentum.
Mohsin Khan, his fellow pacer at Lucknow Super Giants, found himself at a similar crossroads. In 2022, he suffered a shoulder injury and almost lost his hand. Last year, he was sidelined by a calf injury, making even basic movement a challenge. A year later, though, he turned things around by picking up Lucknow Super Giants’ first five-wicket haul of the season. After bowling a maiden and dismissing Vaibhav Sooryavanshi cheaply against Rajasthan Royals, Mohsin returned figures of 5 for 23 against Kolkata Knight Riders, and much of the credit goes to his mentor and “big brother” Mohammed Shami, who supported him in the lead up to the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL).
“It had been almost 14-15 months since the operation. Shami bhai helped me a lot there. I would use all his equipment. He supported me a lot. People expect to see me the way I was before the surgery, so that’s my goal,” said a visibly emotional Mohsin.
The only positive in an otherwise forgettable season
Shami and Mohsin have proven to be a couple of positives amid LSG’s gloomy season. The franchise may be struggling at the bottom of the points table, but Shami and Mohsin have combined to pick 16 wickets in the IPL. Add Prince Yadav’s 13 wickets to the tally and the reading becomes all the more formidable, but even without him, Mohsin (9) has outshone Shami in terms of number of wickets.
“When he came, it was a very difficult time. He was so afraid that he couldn’t even walk or run. It does feel a little uncomfortable at first. I asked him, ‘What are you afraid of?’ He said ‘I just got my crutches removed, so I am not getting the confidence to jog comfortably. So, I spoke to the doctors and said, ‘Don’t worry. Even if something little happens, you’ll get to know. As long as he’s here, let him be. Within 3-4 days, he started catching and jogging. Told him to stop whenever he feels even the slightest discomfort. But till that happens, you keep at it. Otherwise, we’ll go back by 5-6 months,” said Shami.