The exclusion of Mohammed Shami from India’s squad for the upcoming ODI series against New Zealand has sparked sharp criticism, with the veteran pacer’s childhood coach openly questioning the decision-making of the selectors. The three-match series begins on January 11, but Shami’s name was notably absent from the 15-man squad announced on Saturday.

Shami, 35, had been widely expected to return to the ODI setup after delivering an impressive performance in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, India’s premier 50-over domestic competition. His omission, therefore, has come as a major surprise to fans and former players.

Mohammed Shami’s childhood coach questions Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel

Reacting strongly to the snub, Shami’s childhood coach Badruddin Siddique expressed frustration at what he sees as a lack of clarity and fairness in the selection process overseen by Ajit Agarkar, who currently heads the national selection committee.

“What more can a player do? How many more wickets should the player take?” the coach told India Today, voicing disbelief at the decision. His remarks reflect a broader concern among Shami’s supporters, who believe the pacer has done everything required at the domestic level to earn a recall.

The coach further suggested that Shami’s exclusion could signal a worrying shift in the selectors’ plans, hinting that the door to India’s ODI side may be closing for the seasoned fast bowler.

Shami’s impressive Vijay Hazare Trophy performance ignored by selectors

Shami’s numbers in the Vijay Hazare Trophy underline why his omission has raised eyebrows. Representing Bengal, he has picked up 11 wickets in just five matches, consistently troubling batters with pace, seam movement, and accuracy. His performances were seen as a clear statement of intent, particularly after injury setbacks earlier in the year.

Despite this, Shami did not find a place in the Shubman Gill-led ODI squad, leading many to question whether domestic performances are still being given due weight in selection decisions.

Shami’s coach did not hide his concern that the snub could effectively mark the end of the pacer’s ODI journey. “This means that they do not want him in the ODI team. He has a lot to give,” he said, emphasizing that Shami’s experience and skill remain valuable assets.

Having been a key figure in India’s white-ball success over the years, Shami’s potential sidelining raises questions about how the team plans to transition from seasoned campaigners to younger talent, especially with major tournaments on the horizon.

Also READ: Shreyas Iyer IN, Ruturaj Gaikwad OUT as BCCI announce India squad for New Zealand ODIs

India’s pace attack to continue without Shami 

The decision to leave out Shami is further magnified by the fact that Jasprit Bumrah has also been rested for the New Zealand ODIs. In their absence, India’s pace attack will be led by Mohammed Siraj, alongside youngsters Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana.

All-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy has been named as the fifth seam option, highlighting the selectors’ preference for a younger, more flexible pace unit.

Also READ: 7 Indian players who featured in T20 World Cup 2024 but won’t play in 2026 edition

MUMBAI: The family court in Bandra has allowed a divorce petition filed by industrialist Jaidev Shroff against his wife Poonam Bhagat Shroff, granting him divorce after an 11-year-old battle. It directed him to pay a lump sum alimony of Rs 10 crore as full and final settlement.Rejecting Poonam’s plea for a Rs 1,000 crore alimony, the court directed that the Rs 10 crore be paid to her within 3 months. It said the marriage, solemnised in 2004 and later in Jan 2005 under Hindu Vedic rites, stood “dissolved by a decree of divorce on the grounds of cruelty” as contemplated under provisions of the Special Marriage Act. It rejected her claim for lifelong residential rights in the Bandra matrimonial home and usage rights to any of the properties abroad.

The Mumbai family court at Bandra, last week, allowed a divorce petition filed by industrialist Jaidev Shroff against his wife Poonam Shroff, in an 11-year-old battle.The court, directed him to pay her a lump sum permanent alimony of Rs 10 crore as a full and final settlement. Further, Poonam’s plea for enhanced/additional maintenance was also dismissed.Supreme Court had last month rejected Poonam’s plea against a Bombay high court order upholding the family court’s decision not to club her maintenance plea with the divorce proceedings.SC had in August 2025 directed the family court to expedite the hearing and granted a final 3-month extension to decide the pending divorce petition. The family court requested the HC registry for a 9-month extension to decide the dispute.The divorce petition was filed in 2015 before the family court in Mumbai, and on several occasions, the matter reached SC.On December 3, 2021, SC first directed the family court to expedite the divorce hearing. In 2023, Poonam filed for maintenance, and in March 2024, SC again directed the family court to decide the divorce plea in 6 months.

A frustrated Cricket Australia chief Todd Greenberg on Monday vowed to raise concerns over what he described as “archaic” bad light rules with the sport’s governing body after nearly a third of the opening day at the fifth Ashes Test was washed out. Play was halted 15 minutes before the scheduled tea break on Sunday at the Sydney Cricket Ground, with almost 50,000 fans in attendance, due to fading light, light rain and lightning protocols.No further action was possible, with stumps called an hour earlier than scheduled at 5:00 pm and the entire third session abandoned.

“There’s a lot of things that I get frustrated with in cricket but bad light’s one of them,” Greenberg told SEN radio.“Yesterday, maybe more so than ever with a full house and millions watching on TV.“We’ve got to find a better way in cricket … where we try not to come off the field when it’s bad light and show a greater willingness and intent to get back on.”Under ICC regulations, play cannot resume if on-field umpires agree that light conditions are deemed “dangerous or unreasonable”. The rules also stipulate that play cannot restart until at least 30 minutes after lightning strikes in the area, a provision that left fans puzzled as action remained suspended despite improving conditions.Greenberg admitted he did not have an immediate solution but said advancements such as light towers and modern technology suggested there had to be a better approach.“What you can take from my comments is a desire to push at the global level of how we get better at these things because it felt like it wasn’t good enough,” he said.“I have talked about this a bit over the years, the nuance of cricket and some of the strange and archaic rules that sit within the sport.“I’m sure there’s conversations that can be had about how we can be slightly more progressive.“I sound like a broken record, but we’re in the entertainment business, and so I can’t think of another business that continues to walk off in front of its fans.”Former England captain Michael Vaughan also called for a change in “mindset” from match officials and administrators.“In T20 cricket you play in this. Test cricket is the one format that we do everything we possibly can to get off the pitch,” Vaughan told the BBC.“The other two formats we do everything we possibly can to get on the pitch. I just don’t understand why we don’t have that same mindset in Test match cricket.”

Stock market today (AI image)

Stock market today: Nifty50 and BSE Sensex, the Indian equity benchmark indices, opened flat in trade on Monday amidst mixed global cues. While Nifty50 was above 26,300, BSE Sensex was near 85,700. At 9:16 AM, Nifty50 was trading at 26,323.95, down 5 points or 0.017%. BSE Sensex was at 85,710.66, down 51 points or 0.060%.The focus this week is on a data calendar, both in India and overseas, as markets move into the early stage of the earnings season. Domestically, investors will track the final readings of the HSBC Services PMI and Composite PMI for cues on economic momentum.Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited says, “The year 2026 has begun with major geopolitical developments which can have profound consequences. The US action in Venezuela has the potential to further destabilise global geopolitics. The Russia-Ukraine conflict is likely to linger longer; there can be worsening of the protests in Iran and how the Iranian regime reacts to that in the context of threat of intervention by Trump; and perhaps even China might use this time of huge uncertainty for annexation of Taiwan. The huge uncertainty and unpredictability of geopolitics will influence the market, too. We will have to wait and watch how things unfold.” “A positive for India from the Venezuelan crisis is that its medium to long-term impact is bearish for crude. The market is likely to remain resilient in the near-term since we are at an all time high and the momentum might support the bulls. The Bank Nifty is strong and has fundamental support from impressive credit growth. Q3 results of the banking and financials segment will be good.”Global markets offered support after Wall Street closed higher on Friday. The Dow and the S&P 500 ended the session in green, snapping their four day losing streak at the start of 2026, led by gains in technology and industrial stocks such as Nvidia, Intel and Boeing. Asian equities also advanced, touching record levels as investors continued to favour technology shares.In commodities, oil prices showed mild gains on Monday as traders assessed the potential impact of political turmoil in OPEC member Venezuela on crude shipments, following the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the Donald Trump administration. On the domestic institutional front, foreign portfolio investors were net buyers of Indian equities worth Rs 289 crore on Friday, while domestic institutional investors purchased shares worth Rs 677 crore, providing additional support to the market.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)

ULHASNAGAR: The Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation elections have exposed growing cracks within the Shiv Sena’s alliance, raising questions over coordination among its allied parties and potentially opening the door for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to gain an advantage. In at least two key wards, candidates from Shiv Sena’s allies—the Secular Alliance of India (SAI) Party and Team Omie Kalani (TOK)—are contesting directly against each other, undermining the unity of the alliance.According to sources, despite an understanding on seat-sharing, last-minute decisions to field candidates have led to head-to-head contests between alliance partners. This has created confusion among workers and voters alike, with a strong possibility of Shiv Sena–backed votes getting divided.Political observers believe that such internal friction could directly benefit the BJP, which is aggressively contesting against Shiv Sena in Ulhasnagar on all 78 seats.The situation is most visible in Panel No. 9- B, where a triangular contest has emerged between the SAI Party, TOK, and the BJP. Sources say the three-ward panel was initially planned with two seats for TOK and one for the SAI Party. However, TOK’s decision to field Kavita Lassi against the SAI party candidate Asha Idnani disrupted the equation. Kavita Lassi is the wife of Manoj Lassi, considered close to the TOK chief Omie Kalani. The SAI Party has fielded former mayor Asha Idnani, wife of party chief Jeevan Idnani, while the BJP has nominated Deepa Narayan Punjabi, whose husband Narayan was a former corporator from the same ward.Similar confusion has surfaced in Panel 5-D, where SAI Party candidate Sunil Gangwani is facing Shiv Sena nominee Vicky Bhullar, resulting in two alliance candidates in the same ward against BJP’s candidate. SAI party chief Jeevan Idnani has accused TOK of betrayal, alleging that despite senior leaders understanding that in these both panel one SAI party’s candidate will contest TOK also fielded their candidate. He has asserted that the SAI party will fight strongly and ensure its candidate’s victory. On the other hand, Shiv Sena leader Arun Aasan termed the contest a “friendly fight,” stating that Asha Idnani is the official party candidate and Manoj Lassi is also aligned with them.Sources suggest Shiv Sena needs both the Kalani group and the SAI Party who has strong hold in Sindhi dominated areas to secure power in the corporation, and senior leaders are aware of the situation and may take a decision soon.In Ulhasnagar, BJP, Congress and NCP contesting elections seperately while Shiv Sena contesting election in alliance with SAI and TOK. Until clarity emerges, the immediate beneficiary in these wards appears to be the BJP, as alliance disunity reshapes Ulhasnagar’s electoral dynamics.

You don’t have permission to access “http://www.ndtv.com/world-news/oil-prices-fall-after-us-captures-venezuelan-leader-nicolas-maduro-10316946” on this server.

Reference #18.14d92c31.1767586154.3284d6b

https://errors.edgesuite.net/18.14d92c31.1767586154.3284d6b