Former India captain Virat Kohli had nothing but praise for his teammate Mohammed Shami as the veteran pacer was conferred with the Arjuna Award by President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday. Leading India's pace attack at the grandest stage of them all, senior fast bowler Shami reached new heights in the ICC World Cup hosted by India last year. Speedster Shami capped off a fruitful campaign with 24 wickets at the One Day International (ODI) World Cup.
With Kohli leading the batting charge of the Men In Blue, Shami-starrer Team India made it to the final of the ICC World Cup. Recording a perfect ten in the round-robin phase of the World Cup, Rohit Sharma's men were only upstaged by Australia in the final. Rewarded for his memorable performance at the World Cup, Shami was added to the elite list of Arjuna Award winners. In December, the Sports Ministry gave its nod to confer the Arjuna Award to 26 sportspersons, including ace cricketer Shami.
Virat Kohli's king-sized remark on Mohammed Shami
In a regal ceremony, Shami was greeted with rapturous applause when the star cricketer arrived to collect the Arjuna award at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. Taking to Instagram after the National Sports Awards, Shami shared a video to express gratitude. Pacer Shami was congratulated by several members of the cricket fraternity. Leading the tributes on social media, senior batter Kohli posted a special message for Shami. Legendary Indian opener Virender Sehwag, ex-India all-rounder Irfan Pathan and last year's winner Shikhar Dhawan also lauded Shami on social media.
{{/usCountry}}In a regal ceremony, Shami was greeted with rapturous applause when the star cricketer arrived to collect the Arjuna award at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. Taking to Instagram after the National Sports Awards, Shami shared a video to express gratitude. Pacer Shami was congratulated by several members of the cricket fraternity. Leading the tributes on social media, senior batter Kohli posted a special message for Shami. Legendary Indian opener Virender Sehwag, ex-India all-rounder Irfan Pathan and last year's winner Shikhar Dhawan also lauded Shami on social media.
{{/usCountry}}How Mohammed Shami reacted
“Today I am feeling very proud that I have been honoured with the prestigious Arjuna Award by the President. I want to thank all those people who have helped me a lot to reach here and have always supported me in my ups and downs... thanks to My Coach, BCCI, teammates, family, and staff and big thanks to my fans. Thanks for recognising my hard work. I will always try to give my best to make my country proud…Again thanks to everyone..Congratulations to other Arjun award winners,” Shami said.
What's next for pacer Shami
Shami was added to Team India's playing XI after vice-captain Hardik Pandya picked up an ankle injury. The fast bowler became the highest wicket-taker for India at the World Cup last year. Pacer Shami is also the fastest bowler to take 50 wickets in the history of the ODI World Cup. The speed merchant was ruled out of the entire South Africa series due to an ankle injury. The recovering pacer is also not named in India's squad for the Afghanistan T20I series.