Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra believes the selectors have sent a strong message after not picking Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami in the ODI squad for the West Indies series. Kumar recently scalped 14 wickets in 11 matches of the UP T20 league 2026 while leading the Lucknow Falcons. Thus, the fast bowler played a crucial role in taking his team to the final.

The swing pacer from UP had bagged 28 wickets in 16 matches of IPL 2026 and played a key role in taking Royal Challengers Bengaluru to glory.

On the other hand, Mohammed Shami recently snared seven wickets in three matches of the Duleep Trophy at an average of 26.57.

“In all of this, there is no mention of Mohammad Shami anywhere. I think this was an important selection. There is a lot of overlapping happening, you are trying out a lot of new players. There is no Mohammad Shami and no Bhuvneshwar Kumar, so I think the writing is on the wall. When you look at it from Shami and Bhuvi’s point of view, I think this was a very important selection. You could have thought about Bhuvi for T20s and Shami for ODIs, but you are not thinking about it,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

Chopra advised Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami to make peace with their respective snub and keep moving on.

“When there are names like Auqib Nabi, Mayank Yadav, and Prince Yadav, and no Bhuvi or Shami, I think it tells us something. I think this is something that we should accept and realise that this is where we are. Make peace with it and keep moving on, that is what I think,” Aakash Chopra concluded.

The first ODI between India and the West Indies will be played on 27th September.