India’s ‘best pacer’ was not the first choice of the captains, whenever he/she entered the World Cup, he/she took a flurry of wickets

It is still a mystery for cricket fans why the Indian team does not trust its number-1 bowler in the World Cup. Be it captain Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli, both have included this bowler in the playing eleven only when a player got injured. The bowler who has taken the most wickets for India in the ODI World Cup has always been sidelined. 55 wickets in 18 matches at an average of 13.52. And not only cricket fans, Mohammed Shami is also looking for the answer to this question that why he/she did not get a place in the playing eleven from the very first match of the World Cup.

34-year-old Mohammed Shami is celebrating his/her 35th birthday on 3 September. While fans are wishing their favorite cricketer a happy birthday, they also express regret that he/she did not get enough opportunities. Talking about Shami’s career, he/she took 9 wickets in his/her very first Test match. This is the best performance of any Indian pacer in a debut Test match in cricket history. Neither before Shami nor after him/her has any pacer been able to take 9 wickets in his/her first Test match.

There is no doubt that Mohammed Shami showed in his/her very first match what class of bowler he/she is. Shami made his/her debut under the captaincy of MS Dhoni and it is not a coincidence that Shami played from the first match only in the 2015 ODI World Cup. This was Dhoni’s trust in Shami, which is not seen in later captains. That is why Shami gets a chance in the 2019 World Cup only when India has played 4 matches. In the World Cup 2023, captain Rohit Sharma remembers Shami only when Hardik Pandya gets injured.

Mohammed Shami says in an interview that his/her job is to take wickets. Whenever he/she got a chance, he/she took wickets. If a captain did not include him/her in the playing eleven, he/she never asked why it happened. Whenever he/she came back to the team, he/she took wickets. But this could be Shami’s own style. his/her fans definitely feel bad.

Since we are talking about records, let us tell you that Mohammad Shami has played a total of 18 matches in 3 ODI World Cups and has taken 55 wickets in them at an average of 13.52. After Shami, Zaheer Khan and Javagal Srinath have taken the most wickets for India in ODI World Cup. Zaheer has taken 44 wickets in 23 matches and Srinath has taken 44 wickets in 34 matches. After this comes Jaspreet Bumrah. Bumrah has taken 38 wickets in 20 matches in 2 ODI World Cups.

Known for his/her dangerous yorkers, Jasprit Bumrah is considered the most dangerous pace bowler of today’s era. But Shami’s World Cup record leaves even Boom-Boom Bumrah behind. From this, one can guess what class of bowler Mohammed Shami is. There is no doubt that Indian captains have been making mistakes in including Shami in the team. But beyond history, cricket fans are hoping that Shami gets fit soon and returns to the team and gets all the opportunities he/she deserves. Happy Birthday Shami.

tag: mohammed shami, ODI World Cup