Mohammed Shami and the Tendulkars: A 13-year story that began with Sachin, now reaches Arjun

Thirteen years after sharing Sachin Tendulkar’s farewell dressing room, Mohammed Shami watched Arjun begin his LSG journey.

Thirteen years ago, Sachin Tendulkar had ended his illustrious international career in front of his home crowd at the Wankhede Stadium after India beat the West Indies in a Test series. On Saturday, his son, Arjun Tendulkar, started a fresh new chapter in his IPL career as he made his debut for his new franchise, Lucknow Super Giants, in the match against Punjab Kings at the Ekana Cricket Stadium. The one common link between the two moments was Mohammed Shami.

The 13-year connection between Mohammed Shami and the Tendulkars

Back then, at 22, when a young Shami had walked into the Indian dressing room for the first time for a Test assignment, he found himself amidst some of the biggest stars in Indian cricket. And among them was the legendary Sachin. It was his final international assignment, which began with the Test series at Eden Gardens, where Shami made his Test debut, and concluded with his emotional retirement in Mumbai.

More than a decade later, now a senior cricketer himself and nearing the twilight of his own career, Shami witnessed the next generation of the Tendulkar legacy make its debut. On Saturday, it was Sachin’s son who made his debut for LSG.

With Lucknow boasting a star-studded pace line-up, Arjun found it difficult to break into the starting XI despite videos of his searing yorkers in the practice nets frequently surfacing in discussions. However, following a miserable season in which they managed just four wins, Lucknow decided to test their bench strength, and Arjun was picked for their final league game against PBKS at home. And Arjun responded with an impressive display, emerging as the best bowler for the side on an otherwise disappointing night, where they lost by seven wickets.

Arjun finished with figures of 1 for 36, which included the dismissal of Prabhsimran Singh. His first and final overs were economical, conceding just nine runs between them. But what stood out was his ability to bounce back from tough situations. In his second over, he was smashed for 15 runs before Shreyas Iyer hit him for back-to-back fours in the third over as well. But Arjun ended that over with a toe-crushing yorker that deceived Prabhsimran and struck him plumb on the foot in line with the leg stump. It was his fourth IPL wicket in just six appearances.