IND vs PAK: I'd Be Going With Mohammed Shami, He's A Big Player – Tom Moody On India's 3rd Pacer For T20 World Cup 2022

Former Australia National Cricket Team player Tom Moody has backed the senior right-arm pacer Mohammed Shami to be India’s third pacer in the playing XI for the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022. He said that the 32-year-old pacer is “a big player with a lot of experience.”

Mohammed Shami was originally part of the travelling reserves in India’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 squad. However, he was added to the main squad after pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah got ruled out of the tournament due to a back injury.

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Shami, who was out of India’s scheme of things in T20Is since the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 in UAE, in India’s warm-up game against Australia at the Brisbane Cricket Ground, Woolloongabba, on Monday, October 17, was called by captain Rohit Sharma out of nowhere to bowl his first over in the final over of the match when Australia needed 11 runs to win.

The 32-year-old right-arm pacer delivered an exceptional over, picking 3 wickets by giving away just 4 runs to help India win the match by 6 runs.

Speaking on Star Sports show ‘Game Plan’, Tom Moody picked Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Shami as three pacers to be part of India’s playing XI in the marquee tournament.

“I’d be going with Shami. I’d just go with his experience. Obviously, Bhuvi (Bhuvneshwar Kumar) and Arshdeep (Shami) are the first two. I just think that in big tournaments, you back big players. And he’s a big player with a lot of experience.

“He may be short with some volume in his bowling, but that one over he bowled against Australia would have gone a long way with regards to not so much the physical side of things, but definitely the mental side of things,” Moody said.

In their tournament opener, India National Cricket Team will take on arch-rivals Pakistan National Cricket Team on October 23 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

It’s an intriguing contest – Tom Moody on India vs Pakistan clash

Speaking on the same show, Moody talked about the “intriguing contest” between India and Pakistan. He said that the real battle will be between India’s strong batting unit and Pakistan’s strong bowling unit. Tom Moody added that Indian batters need to be watchful in the powerplay overs.

“I think it’s an intriguing contest, because, to me, India are a batting-strong side while Pakistan, I think, are a bowling-strong side. So, for me, it’s a real contest as to how well India bat against a very strong new ball attack.

“If they get through that, I see India controlling the game. But that’s where they need to manage – in the first six overs. Now, we know it’s T20, we know it’s Power Play, and we also know that if we want to get off to a flyer, we have to manage that carefully. So, I’m not saying you need to be conservative, you need to be watchful.”

Moody, who is the Director of Cricket of Sri Lanka Cricket, further said: “I think there’s one thing you need to take into consideration of the pitch. The pitch at The Gabba is a bouncy one. Is it going to be the same at the MCG?

“I wouldn’t take it for granted that it would be the same as The Gabba. Another thing to take into consideration is the big boundaries. Yes, there will be big boundaries at the MCG, we know that.

“It’s a big venue, so the short ball and the use of that length, hard length, with that change of pace into that length, is the key to bowling at the MCG. So, I’m sure both teams are very aware of what the tactical play is with the ball in those top-end overs and particularly in those defensive overs.”

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