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'Cummins takes wickets using short ball...Look at Shami...': Bangar drops bombshell statement ahead of World Cup final
Sanjay Bangar dropped a bombshell statement on Mohammed Shami ahead of India's World Cup final vs Australia.
Mohammed Shami has been on fire for Team India, and has become Rohit Sharma's go-to bowler in tight situations at the ongoing 2023 Cricket World Cup. The hosts are set to face arch-rivals Australia in the final on Sunday, and will be hoping for their veteran pacer to have a dominant outing in Ahmedabad.
Going into the tournament, Shami wasn't the favourite to be included in the playing XI, with the team management preferring Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj as the two pacers. Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya and Shardul Thakur were the fast-bowling all-rounders. But Hardik's injury against Bangladesh paved the way for Shami, which was further helped by Thakur's below-average form.
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The GT star announced his arrival in style and took a wicket in his first delivery of this tournament, and perfectly summed up his inclusion with a majestic seven-wicket haul in the semi-final against New Zealand, which is also the best-ever figures by an Indian bowler in ODI cricket history.
His seven-wicket haul vs Kane Williamson's side saw him surge to the top of the standings in the wickets chart, with 23 wickets in only six matches, ahead of Australia's Adam Zampa, who has taken 22 dismissals in 10 games. Shami has also registered a four-wicket haul and three fifers in this tournament, and will be hoping to spoil the party for Australia.
Speaking on Star Sports, former India batting coach Sajay Bangar hailed Shami and his resilience in overcoming 'some rough patches'. "Very proud of Mohammed Shami. He has gone through some rough patches, not only in his career but fitness-wise as well, as well as in his personal life, so it is great to see somebody of that sort of a character having gone through those ups and downs and still keeping his head high," he said.
Lauding Shami's passion, Bangar said, "n such times, what you require is passion to go back to what you love doing, keep playing cricket. He has bowled India to victory consistently."
"Shami not originally being a part of the original World Cup squad was a little bit surprising. If there weren't injury concerns to some bowlers, he might not have got his selection. But I guess, good sense prevailed and he became a part of the squad. If you see a bowler like Pat Cummins who bowls one change, he has picked up wickets using the short delivery. On the other hand, look at Shami, he has picked up wickets, bowling fuller length with the old ball and that goes onto show the quality of the player and he has performed exceedingly well in the tournament," he further added.
Other than Shami, India's other bowlers have also been in fiery form. Jasprit Bumrah is the fifth-highest wicket taker in this tournament with 18 scalps in 10 matches. Meanwhile, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is eighth with 16 scalps, and is also the Indian spinner with the highest wickets in a single World Cup campaign.
