Mohammed Shami produces sensational all-round show amid major injury reports – watch

Showing no signs of rust, Mohammed Shami smashed 32 off 17 balls and bowled 13 dot balls in his four overs to take Bengal to the quarter-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, leading his side to a thrilling three-run win. The path was paved. Against Chandigarh on Monday. With no clarity on his international comeback, the 34-year-old played his eighth SMAT T20 game in 16 days and has bowled his full quota in almost all the games. That day, he used the long handle to good effect for the first time, scoring 19 off the last over of the experienced Sandeep Sharma, helping Bengal reach 159 for 9 after stumbling to 114 for 8.

He hit two sixes and three fours, most of which came from the point area, but a partnership of 21 runs in 10 balls with Sayan Ghosh proved crucial for the final wicket.

Bengal has set a target of 160 runs for Chandigarh.

Mo. Shami provided the crucial final surge with 32*(17)

Karan Lal scored the highest 33 (25) runs.

Jagjit Singh Sandhu was the best bowler for Chandigarh with 4/21.#SMAT , @IDFCFIRSTBANK

Scorecardhttps://t.co/u42rkbUfTJ pic.twitter.com/gQ32b5V9LN

– BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) 9 December 2024

Kolkata's veteran slinger Ghosh (4/30), considered an expert in the death overs, bowled a brilliant final over with 11 runs needed as Nikhil Sharma's plan went awry. Chandigarh was restricted to 156 runs for 9 wickets.

Shami was seen bowling fit

Shami, already well warmed up after facing 17 balls, bowled the first spell very well and got opener Arslan Z Khan caught by Shakir Habib Gandhi on the very third ball.

Compared to his first Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh, where he looked overweight and a bit loose despite bowling 42 overs, Shami looked lean on Monday and the famous straight seam presentation was very much in play.

During the Ranji match, many experts debated on how his follow-through, which is fairly straightforward after delivery, was ending up towards cover which was an indication that he was unable to complete his action.

But on Monday, the follow-through seemed even more difficult than that comeback game.

He bowled at an average pace of 135 clicks with a delivery cranking in the 139 kmph range. During the first spell of three overs, they gave away only 11 runs, which included a lofted four from Manan Vohra and a brilliant four from Amrit Lal Lubana, which was hastily converted into a stroke that turned out to be a Chinese cut.

In the final over, which was the last over of the innings, when he tried a slow off-break he was picked out to hit a four and a six, which was picked up by Jagjit Singh Sandhu.

Overall, Shami has played nine domestic games so far – one Ranji Trophy (42.3 overs) and eight SMAT T20 games (31.3 overs). He has bowled a total of 64 overs and taken 16 wickets.

Is Shami fit for Test level?

Even though it is a four-over format, he still looks to be largely on the right track, but as Jasprit Bumrah's main bowling partner in a Test match, he will be expected to bowl at least three, if not more, 20 overs in a day. Will be expected to bowl four spells. average. He will also have to field 100 overs.

It is believed that the national selectors would be keen to pick him whenever they deem him fit, but buzz in the corridors of BCCI is that the veteran fast bowler himself has told the NCA medical team that “he is still not ready for a Test match”. “.

He has been telling his evaluators that he has no problems while bowling, but feels a little swelling in his knee after matches, which was also mentioned by Test captain Rohit Sharma while speaking to the media after losing the Adelaide Test.