'Easily among the best three seamers in the world': Kohli lauds 'world-class' Mohammed Shami after Centurion exploits

Kohli named Shami among the top-3 seamers in the world at the post-match presentation ceremony.

Mohammed Shami ended the first Test in Centurion with eight wickets in his bag which included a five-wicket haul in the first innings, and India's Test captain Virat Kohli heaped high praise on the fast bowler. Shami, accompanied by India's terrific pace bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, played a huge role in India's 113-run victory against South Africa on Thursday.

India's bowler Mohammed Shami reacts after taking a career 200th Test wickets, during the third day of the Test Cricket match between South Africa and India at Centurion Park in Pretoria. (AP)

Kohli named Shami among the top-3 seamers in the world at the post-match presentation ceremony and added that he had an “impactful” performance in the game.

“Absolutely world-class talent. For me, he is easily among the best three seamers in the world right now. Just the way he bowls on pitches which don't seem to do often like the others, he gets the extra bit from every pitch purely because of his strong wrists, his seam position and ability to hit the lengths consistently,” Kohli said.

“(He bowls on) areas where you can't leave the ball and that's absolutely his biggest quality. Very happy for him to get 200 wickets and again an impactful performance.”

Kohli also lauded the Indian fast bowling trio and insisted that the pacers have played a major role in bailing India out of tough situations, which remains a “hallmark” of the team.

“Knew the bowlers will do the job. Spoke about it in the change room - the fact he didn't bowl much in the first innings, it allowed SA to get around 40 more runs (Bumrah). Just the way these guys bowl together has been a hallmark of our team getting a result in difficult situations,” said the Indian Test captain.

India will next face South Africa in the second Test in Wanderers, which was also the venue where Virat Kohli and co's Test domination kickstarted in 2018. The Kohli-led team had then defeated the Proteas at the venue in a closely-fought game by 63 runs.