T20 World Cup 2022: 3 reasons why Mohammad Shami could feature in India's playing XI against Pakistan
An untimely injury to Jasprit Bumrah saw Mohammad Shami drafted into India's squad for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup in Australia. The Bengal seamer hasn't played a T20I since the last edition of the tournament in the UAE in 2021.
Having said that, he has made a strong case for himself to feature in India's first Super 12 clash against Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Sunday, October 23. While skipper Rohit Sharma stated prior to the start of the T20 World Cup that he has his playing XI for the high-voltage game in mind, Shami's skills are hard to ignore.
Aside from his experience, the Gujarat Titans (GT) pacer enjoyed a fine IPL campaign this year despite bowling largely in the powerplay. There were question marks over how reliable he could be in the death overs but he answered those queries with a brilliant final over in the warm-up fixture against Australia, registering figures of 3/4. It was his only over of the game as he successfully defended 11, with India winning the contest by six runs.
BREAKING NEWS
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🚨BREAKING NEWS🚨
Team India have announced Jasprit Bumrah’s replacement 🇮🇳🏏
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Ideally, the Men in Blue would have wanted to give him a go in the second warm-up game against New Zealand in Brisbane on Wednesday, October 19. But with rain playing spoilsport, that wasn't going to be the case.
He could still be part of India's plans for their match against Pakistan though. Let's look at three reasons why.
#1 Mohammad Shami is the quickest bowler in the Indian ranks
Pace and bounce are factors associated with conditions in Australia. With Bumrah no longer available, Shami is the quickest frontline seamer in the Indian team. His ability to hit the deck hard and hustle the batters for pace adds an X-factor to the bowling set-up.
While Hardik Pandya can also assume that role, the Men in Blue will be wary of his workload. Given that Pakistan's batters have tended to struggle against high velocity, this could tilt the scales in favor of Shami's inclusion for India's Super 12 opener at the T20 World Cup.
#2 Harshal Patel's form
This has been a huge factor of concern for the Men in Blue heading into the T20 World Cup. Since returning from injury, Harshal Patel has looked a pale shadow of the canny bowler who has foxed batters aplenty in the last couple of IPL seasons.
The dip in his off-cutter has gone missing and while signs of him regaining it were on display in the warm-up game against Australia, the management would ideally want to see more. He bowled a superlative 19th over in the concerned fixture but Shami too, did his bit in the last over and sealed the contest.
Harshal does lengthen the batting line-up as well, but with his form remaining a concern, the door might just be left ajar for Shami to take the field against Pakistan.
#3 Shami's rhythm in the warm-up game against Australia
He may have bowled just six deliveries against Australia but coming off the bench and nailing his yorkers at will spoke volumes of Shami's rhythm. That would have pleased the Indian team management to no end as they seek to end a 15-year T20 World Cup drought.
There were qualms over whether he was the ideal bowler to replace Bumrah but he silenced those doubts with a fine display in the 20th over. What stood out though was his rhythm as he ran in at full tilt and bowled as well as he has.
This is a factor that could tempt the team management into giving some serious thought towards including him in the lineup ahead of the marquee clash against Pakistan.
Do you think Mohammad Shami should feature in India's T20 World Cup clash against Pakistan? Let us know in the comments section below!
Also read: T20 World Cup 2022, IND vs AUS: 5 takeaways from India's win over Australia in warm-up match