Wanted to give Shami a challenge: Rohit on holding him back till final over
Updated On: 18 October, 2022 10:18 AM IST | Brisbane | PTI
Drafted into the squad as a replacement for the injured Jasprit Bumrah, Shami landed yorker after yorker and ended up with three wickets in the over
Listen to this article :
Indian captain Rohit Sharma, left, gestures to teammate Mohammed Shami following the ICC T20 World Cup warm-up cricket match between Australia and India at the Gabba in Brisbane, Australia. Pic/AP, PTI
Bowling Mohammed Shami only in the final over of India`s warm-up match against Australia was highly surprising. Justifying the move, skipper Rohit Sharma said the plan was to throw a "challenge" at the man returning from a long layoff. Taking the challenge head on, Shami put the concerns over his fitness to rest with a sensational 20th over as India pulled off a six-run win in their first warm-up fixture of the T20 World Cup here on Monday. Drafted into the squad as a replacement for the injured Jasprit Bumrah, Shami landed yorker after yorker and ended up with three wickets in the over. "Honestly, he is coming back after a long time. So we just wanted to give him an over. This was always the plan from the beginning," Rohit said on Star Sports.
"He comes and bowls at the death. We know how lethal he can be with the new ball. We just wanted to give him a little bit of a challenge, coming and bowling that death over and we saw what it was," the India captain said of the man who last played a competitive game in July and landed here after suffering a long bout of COVID-19. Needing 11 to win off six balls, the Australians were on course but Shami, returning from a long injury layoff, had other ideas as the home team lost four wickets in the last over, including a run out. K L Rahul (57 off 33) and Suryakumar Yadav (50 off 33) smashed entertaining half-centuries to power India to 186 for seven after Australia opted to bowl at the Gabba. However, concerns over India`s bowling remains ahead of their tournament opener against arch-rivals Pakistan on October 23. Rohit is seeking more consistency in bowling.
Trending Stories
Latest Photos
Latest Videos
Latest Web Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
Mid-Day Fast
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT