Mohammed Shami is bowling like a 22-year-old: Arshdeep Singh

Mohammed Shami was expected to make his long-awaited international comeback during India’s series opener against England at the Eden Gardens yesterday. However, during the toss, it was made aware by Suryakumar Yadav that the speedster wouldn’t be featuring. No clear reason was provided for the same. Consequently, a fresh wave of talks about Shami’s fitness has surfaced on social media.

Fellow Indian seamer, Arshdeep Singh, quashed all rumours of a fresh injury afflicting Shami. He even asserted that the way the seasoned pacer operated in the nets was as if he were his 22-year-old self.

“Just yesterday, I was talking about the same thing with Shami bhai because when he was bowling, the way the ball was coming out of his hand was absolutely amazing. With every delivery, you would say, ‘wow, how can such an incredible ball come out of someone’s hand like this!’ Just wait for a few more days, and you’ll get to see that bowling, and you’ll enjoy it a lot. The way the ball is coming out of his hand makes it look like the 22-year-old Shami bhai is bowling again,” shared Arshdeep in a post-match interview with JioCinema.

It’s great to see him fit and back in the side: Suryakumar

In the pre-match press conference, Suryakumar confirmed that Shami was fit and ready to go.

“It’s always good to have an experienced bowler in your side, and he is making a comeback after over a year. I am really excited to see him. I have witnessed his journey – what he did at the NCA, how he focused on his bowling and recovery. It’s great to see him fit and back in the side,” noted Suryakumar.

With this, Shami likely feature in the remainder of the white-ball series. It only remains a question of when. India comfortably clinched the first game by a seven-wicket margin and will be playing the second T20I in Chennai.