WATCH: “Rohit pehle hi mana kar deta hai, Virat se to mera…,” Shami opens up on his battles with star batters in the nets

Shami is currently recovering from the Achilles tendon surgery he underwent earlier this year.

By Salman Anjum - 20 Jul, 2024

India pacer Mohammad Shami is currently recovering from the surgery he underwent to treat his Achilles tendon injury earlier this year.

Shami, who has been out of action since the end of the 2023 World Cup in November, only recently started rolling his arm over in the nets.

Amidst all this, the right-arm quick took time out to appear on a podcast and revealed some funny secrets from India's training sessions.

Talking about the little battles between the batters and bowlers, Shami said star batter Virat Kohli likes to get challenged while skipper Rohit Sharma refuses to face him in the nets.

"Virat se to mera hamesha se rehta hai ki hum ek dusre ko challenge dete hain (with Virat it's always like we challenge each other). He likes to hit good shots, I like to get him out. The bonding and the friendship reflects in that. It also helps you focus and put in the effort as you simulate (fielding positions), for example, two (imaginary) slips in place, two gully fielders. (So I challenge Virat) to come at me and score runs. We enjoy such things," said Shami on Shubhankar Mishra's YouTube podcast.

He added, “Rohit to pehle hi kehta hai 'mai isko khelna pasand nahi karta'. Woh to pehle hi mana kar deta hai (Rohit says I don't like to face him, he refuses to bat against me)."

Due to surgery, Mohammad Shami has already missed the home Test series against England, the IPL and the T20 World Cup this year. He is likely to make a comeback in the home series against Bangladesh.

India will host Bangladesh for two Tests and three T20 Internationals in September-October.

By Salman Anjum - 20 Jul, 2024

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