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Mohammed Shami Defends 2019 World Cup Performance: ’13 Wickets in 3 Matches, What More Do You Want?

In the ODI World Cup, Mohammed Shami is the only Indian bowler with most wickets taken (71). He has taken the third-best number of wickets by an Asian bowler with fifty-five, which ranks fifth in history. Not to mention, he is the first bowler in World Cup history to have four five-wicket performances. But in the last three ICC tournaments, he was never a reliable presence in the Indian playing XI. In the last three World Cups, India played 28 matches, and Shami was only in 18 of them (winning 15 of those matches). The first four group matches of the 2019 World Cup, where India was captained by Virat Kohli and coached by Ravi Shastri, saw Shami sit out, just like in 2023. Only the fifth game against Afghanistan did Shami play, and in that game he scored a hat-trick. In his next three appearances, he scored a couple of goals against England.

Shami did not play in the semifinal match against New Zealand, though, having taken 14 wickets in four matches before being rested for the last group match against Sri Lanka. Afterwards, India lost to the Kiwis by 18 runs. Shami acknowledged that he was perplexed by the team management’s 2019 position in an interview with Shubhankar Mishra on his YouTube show, “Unplugged.” Even while every team needs strong players, he wondered why, after giving it his all, his performance went unnoticed. I skipped the first four to five games in 2019. I claimed a five-wicket haul in the following game after taking a hat-trick in the previous one. 2023 saw something similar occur. I didn’t play in the first few games, so I took four, then five wickets in the next game,” he remarked.

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“I always find myself thinking if all teams require players who can play well. In three games, I claimed thirteen wickets. What else do you anticipate from me? Neither questions nor answers arise for me. I can only demonstrate my abilities when given the chance. I took 13 wickets in three matches after you gave me a chance. Then we were defeated by New Zealand. participated in four games total and took 14 wickets. “In seven matches in 2023, I picked 24 wickets,” he continued. Shami was once more rested for the first three games of 2023 and didn’t make the starting lineup until Hardik Pandya got hurt and had to be ruled out. To become the tournament’s top wicket-taker, he played seven matches and took 24 wickets, including two fifers.