India pacer Mohammad Shami has taken the cricketing world by storm with his stunning exploits in the ongoing World Cup at home.
Shami was included in the playing XI after India were forced to alter their playing combination due to Hardik Pandya’s ankle injury.
As it turned out, the right-arm quick wreaked havoc on the opposition batting line-up, claiming 16 wickets from four matches at an astonishing average of 7 with two five-wicket hauls.
Shami’s latest heroics came against South Africa at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Sunday (November 5). He returned with the figures of 2 for 18 in his four overs, helping India annihilate the Proteas by 243 runs.
After the game, India batter Shreyas Iyer heaped massive praise on Mohammad Shami, calling him a man of action.
“I had this conversation with him once I got out that this is your wicket because he is someone who seams the ball so well. He’s got immense experience playing for India for so many years. I personally feel that he’s a calm gentleman in the dressing room. He doesn’t talk much, he’s a man of action,” said Iyer while speaking to Star Sports.
Shreyas, who played a crucial knock of 77 against South Africa, further stated that Shami waits for his opportunity and always capitalizes on it.
“Whenever you look at him, you feel he’s going to do something different out there. He waits for his opportunity to come and always capitalizes on it. So that’s something that helps him a lot. Even Bumrah and Siraj have been sensational since the start,” he added.
Coming to the match, India racked up 326/5 on the board, courtesy of Virat Kohli’s record-equalling 49th ODI ton (101*) and Shreyas Iyer’s half-century.
In reply, South Africa’s innings folded for a paltry 83 in 27.1 overs. It was a listless batting display as none of the Proteas batters managed to touch the 20-run mark. Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja ran through the South African batting line-up, claiming five wickets by conceding 33 runs in his 9 overs.
This victory guaranteed India a pole position on the points table irrespective of the result in their last league match against Netherlands on November 12.
