"I Was Under A Lot Of Pressure..."- Mohammed Shami On Dropping Kane Williamson's Catch In World Cup Semifinal

India fast bowler Mohammed Shami has admitted he was under pressure after dropping New Zealand captain Kane Williamson during the World Cup semifinal last month. Chasing an improbable target of 398 runs, New Zealand were off to a poor start and were reeling at 39 for 2 after losing both their openers.

Kane Williamson and Daryl Mitchell then steadied the ship and revived New Zealand’s hopes with a century-plus stand. India were finding it tough to break the stand and were steadily moving towards the backfoot when Williamson offered an easy catch to Mohammed Shami at mid-on in the 29th over.

The India pacer, however, failed to hold on to the catch. Williamson was batting on 52 at that time. However, before the drop could prove costly for India, Mohammed Shami made amends by dismissing the New Zealand skipper before going on to blow their middle and lower order away. Williamson was dismissed for 69 and Mohammed Shami ended the game with historic figures of 7 for 57.

Mohammed Shami opens up on dropping Kane Williamson:

Recalling the dropped catch, Mohammed Shami revealed that he was under a lot of pressure after the missed opportunity. He stated that he was desperate to make amends for the drop by dismissing the New Zealand skipper.

“Things changed after that dropped catch. I had never expected that I could drop such a catch. I thought to myself that now he has to get out at any cost. I was under a lot of pressure after that. When I was running to bowl, I thought that either he is going to hit me for three sixes, or I would get him out,” Mohammed Shami told Sports Tak.

“There was a thought that that target was chasable. The match was at the Wankhede Stadium, where there is true bounce. If there are set batters at the crease, it doesn’t matter, even if you need to chase a 400-run target. You can’t be safe after scoring that many runs, especially when you are up against an equal opponent,” he added.

India eventually won the game by 70 runs after bowling out New Zealand for 327. Shami went on to finish the World Cup as the highest wicket-taker. He picked up 24 wickets in 7 games with the help of three five-wicket hauls.