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‘Unless he hits 100-200 balls, he doesn’t get sleep’: Shami reveals India batter who frustrates him most at nets
During the interaction, Shami also revealed the name of Team India batter, who he doesn't look forward to bowl at the nets.
India's premier seamer Mohammed Shami is regarded as one of the finest talent in modern day cricket. The 31-year-old is among the regulars in all the three formats and in a career of almost nine years so far, the medium pacer has represented India in 57 Test, 71 ODIs, and 17 T20Is.
The bowler, who was a guest at The Indian Express' Idea Exchange, discussed in length about his cricketing journey. During the interaction, Shami also revealed the name of Team India batter, who he doesn't look forward to bowl at the nets.
“We are professionals, it’s never a case of likes. The BCCI pays us so well to do what we like, so one enjoys bowling (laughs).”
“But no one can irritate you like Cheteshwar Pujara. As everyone knows, unless he hits 100 to 200 balls, he doesn’t get sleep,” said Shami.
While Pujara has not been named in Team India squad for upcoming Tests against Sri Lanka, most are aware of his capabilities to frustrate the bowlers in red-ball format.
The 34-year-old Saurashtra batter has represented India in 95 Tests, in which he has amassed 6713 runs at an average of 43.88. Apart from three double centuries, he also has 18 tons and 32 half-centuries under his name.
Shami also opened up about his first reaction on seeing Bumrah, the delivery he would love to have from him and about the pace department.
The 31-year-old stated that he felt a bit strange when he saw Bumrah's action for the first time, which was in Indian Premier League.
“The first time I saw him was during the IPL. It felt a bit strange seeing him because of his bowling action. I wondered how someone could bowl so fast with that action and where he got the power from. When he got drafted in the Indian team, I knew him better. He performed and became part of the Test team. Today, you see a different Jasprit Bumrah. He has such control, he has everything,” he said.
The veteran pacer then talked about how fond he has been of Bumrah's yorker deliveries. He also talked about the Indian pace unit and each has played a role in getting the best out of the other.
“The one thing I would love to have from him is his yorker. Such a lovely ball. It’s fun to bowl together. With the kind of Test match bowling we have now, I don’t think we ever had such a period in our cricketing history. If you look at our graph for the last five years, I feel it is the highest. I enjoy bowling with Jassi, Umesh, Ishant and all of them. We know each other’s ability. The best quality of this bowling unit is that whenever someone is down, we lift each other up and give confidence. These are the things one remembers in life. We walk together through thick and thin,” he added.
