The whole world may have been surprised by India’s bowling revival at the World Cup, but not Mohammed Shami.
“Having good and bad days is part of the game,” he said here on Friday. “While playing Test matches the mentality and training was according to that format of the game and then the mindset changed. It isn’t that tough. We are not at a junior level where you are taught certain things. We change our thinking according to the format of the game.”
Shami has been at the vanguard of India’s wicket-munching bowling unit, which has dismissed the opposition in all five of its matches so far. He will be looking to add to his 12 wickets (from four games) when India meets Zimbabwe at Eden Park on Saturday.
“We will continue to do what we have been doing well till now,” he said. “Our main focus would be to make minimum mistakes and continue with this flow. I’d like to believe that till now I haven’t had that bad a patch. By God’s grace, everything is going well for me at the moment. Whenever I go through a rough patch or a bad day, I go back to my room and think about my mistakes. Or, I talk to my captain and teammates and rectify my mistakes in the practice sessions.”
Determined The team was determined to win a second World Cup in a row, Shami stated. “The focus is to win the Cup come what may. The 2011 World Cup did have more craze since it was Sachin Tendulkar’s last World Cup and everyone in the team worked towards achieving that goal. We too are playing this World Cup in the same way. Who knows who would be missing from the next World Cup. We are playing the World Cup with the same kind of intensity,” he said.
M.S. Dhoni has used Shami as an out-and-out wicket-taking bowler. He has repaid the captain’s faith, setting the tone for the innings with an excellent first spell in every single match. “I have made my debut in all formats under his captaincy,” he said.
“I like the way he handles the team and handles me as a bowler. I am always free and I’ve never been tense when he has captained the side. He is not someone who demands certain things from me. He is someone who has always told me about my mistakes and asked me not to repeat them in the future. He never gets angry. He will tell you things very calmly and handles the situation well which helps a bowler.”
Shami took three for 41 against Ireland, India’s first game in New Zealand at the World Cup, while Umesh Yadav and Mohit Sharma were both uneconomical. “Since the grounds in Australia are bigger you have more options of bowling in terms of area. You can pitch the ball up and use variations. In smaller grounds you cannot make mistakes and you cannot give the batsmen much chances of run-scoring,” he said.
Plans drawn up Brendan Taylor, Zimbabwe’s departing middle-order batsman, revealed that his side’s coach Dav Whatmore, who formerly worked at India’s National Cricket Academy, had drawn up plans against the opposition’s players.
“At training sessions, he’s had little whispers in our ears as individuals and just really raising the idea about certain players and certain bowlers and certain batters,” he said. “He’s been brilliant for Zimbabwe cricket.”
