Birthday Special: How Shami bounced back fitter, stronger & leaner
Over the past couple of years, Mohammed Shami has successfully established himself as a valuable asset to the Indian side. Impressing everyone with his blistering pace and accuracy, Shami broke into the national side in 2013 against Pakistan in ODIs. He made an instant impact with his bowling, leading to his selection against Australia and New Zealand. The Bengal pacer was also a part of India’s Asia Cup 2014 squad, impressing everyone with his pace and swing.
After flaunting his brilliance with the white ball, Shami also got the opportunity to represent India in the traditional format. The speedster was slotted in the side for the Tests against West Indies, which also happened to be Sachin Tendulkar’s farewell series. Impressing on his red-ball debut, Shami scalped 9 wickets and showed a glimpse of what was yet to come.
The cruel turn in his career
However, like every other story, Shami’s fairytale also had its twists and turns. In 2018, the pacer was accused of adultery, domestic violence and attempted murder by his wife Hasin Jahan. An FIR was also filed against the pacer and his 4 family members, putting a question mark on his future journey with the Indian side.
His wife even shared screenshots of Shami’s alleged chats with other women. A controversy always derails a player’s career and it was looking like Shami’s career had taken an ugly turn too. He, however, denied the accusations saying that it was all a conspiracy to defame him. He was also accused of match-fixing. BCCI even held back his central contract pending Anti Corruption Unit’s inquiry.
Shami, overcoming all the hurdles as well as injuries, finally returned to the national side and hasn’t looked back since then. BCCI’s Anti-Corruption unit cleared him of all corruption charges and Shami’s voyage slowly moved towards new beginnings. Recently, in a candid chat with Rohit Sharma on Instagram live, the pacer revealed that he had thought of committing suicide while struggling with his personal problems. But he finally leapt over the hurdles to make a spectacular return to India’s setup.
The sensational comeback
Shami’s performance in the 2019 World Cup re-established his place in the national side. A hungry Shami hogged the headlines by scalping 14 wickets in 4 matches at the showpiece event, including a match-winning hat-trick against Afghanistan.
His career continued to flourish as he led the Indian bowling force in the Test sweep against South Africa. Shami efficiently led the pace battery in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, claiming 13 wickets and playing an integral role in India’s 3-0 triumph.
Mohammed Shami has so far scalped 180 Test wickets and 144 ODI wickets despite struggling with injuries and personal life controversies. His impressive stint with the ball even earned him praise from skipper Virat Kohli.
“Shami is someone who can change the complexion of the match totally when you don’t see it coming,” said Kohli.
Returning to the biggest stage is an arduous task, especially while struggling with mental health. Shami not only retaliated mentally but also enhanced physically. Shedding extra kilos and being in a good head space has helped the speedster in becoming an indispensable part of the Indian side.
Having represented India in all the formats, Shami will be aiming to dazzle on the Australian soil later this year. His last appearance for India was against New Zealand at Christchurch where he scalped four wickets in the first innings. Despite India’s seven-wicket defeat, Shami was one of the standout performers amongst Kohli’s men.
As part of Kings XI Punjab, Shami is expected to dazzle in the much-awaited IPL 2020 that starts on September 19th. Without a doubt, has had a remarkable turnaround in his fortunes in the past couple of years. Striding over personal issues and concealing injuries, Shami has evolved into a world-class pacer who can clock blistering speed at a consistent rate.
