Mohammed Shami
Mohammed Shami (Photo-PTI)

Senior India pacer, Mohammed Shami is delighted to see the solid bench strength in Indian cricket, especially in the pace bowling department, despite the fact that the youngsters could soon displace him from the eleven.

It all started with injuries to Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, then Mohammed Shami himself in the first Test in Australia, which made way for Mohammed Siraj to make his Test debut. Subsequent injuries to Umesh Yadav and then Jasprit Bumrah found India fielding a young and inexperienced pace bowling attack comprising of Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, and T Natarajan in the fourth Test at the Gabba.

Sanjay Manjrekar, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
Mohammed Siraj [Image Credit: PTI]
The youngsters registered a historic win in Brisbane and clinched the series which announced them to the world. While Bumrah and Ishant returned to the side for the home Tests against England, Siraj was selected in the eleven over Umesh, and he has bowled impressively again, helping Virat Kohli’s side qualify for the final of the World Test Championship.

As long as there is the skill and my body will accompany me, I will play: Mohammed Shami

While Mohammed Shami, who has recovered from his wrist injury and made a return through the IPL 2021, is likely to feature in the WTC final against New Zealand and at the moment is one of the first names on the team sheets, at least in overseas matches. He would still, though, will have to be on his toes and push himself; Bhuvneshwar Kumar, too, has regained his fitness and has expressed his desire to play Tests in England.

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However, Mohammed Shami says that he doesn’t see the current scenario as a competition. He is happy that there the future of Indian cricket is secure in the hands of the youngsters. The 30-year-old reckons he will continue playing as long his body is fit.

Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah
Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah (Photo-Getty)

“I don’t see it as a competition. Newcomers are our bench strength. Whether batting or bowling, newcomers are the future. No one can play all his life. As long as there is skill and my body will accompany, I will play. I can’t keep dragging on my career for the sake of it,” Mohammed Shami said in an interaction with ABP Ananda.

“And a good reserve bench is therefore very important. It’s great that the new boys are playing well. Their confidence will also increase. They will keep getting better with tough experiences. There is no competition. It is excellent news for the Indian team that so many talented boys are coming up,” he added.

The seamer is currently playing for the Punjab Kings and was brilliant on his return – in a high-scoring encounter against Rajasthan Royals, Mohammed Shami returned with figures of 2/33. Punjab takes on the Chennai Super Kings on Friday in Mumbai.

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