Mohammed Shami's impressive numbers on 50 overs comeback

India began their ICC Champions Trophy 2017 preparations with a bang. They took on the Black Caps on Saturday here at the Kennington Oval, London. It might have been just a warm-up game, but the fans were excited to see how their favourite team performs in English conditions. They won the last edition of Champions Trophy in England and began this year’s campaign on a good note.

Winning the toss, New Zealand’s skipper Kane Williamson decided to bat first. Guptill put his foot on the accelerator from the very first ball. But he was undone in the third over by Mohammed Shami. Shami, the most promising Indian fast bowler since he made his debut was once again making a comeback in international cricket after a long time. He did not a have good Indian Premier League heading to England. In 8 matches, he managed to get just 5 scalps. Moreover, he was not able to contain runs and conceded at a rate of over 9 runs per over.

Shami is back!

The IPL is over and so is Shami’s poor run of form. He was on song against the Kiwis. After Guptill’s dismissal, skipper Williamson took the charge. But he too was dismissed by Shami. Neil Broom was his next prey in the very next ball. Thereby, Shami broke the backbone of New Zealand’s innings. He then left the field to take a break. He was not able to find success thereafter. In 8 overs, he gave 47 runs and took 3 crucial wickets.

The right-arm pacer needed time to get his line and length adjusted to the pitch but once he got accustomed the deliveries were focused more in the channel outside the off stump and the batsmen were in trouble with the kind of pace he generates.

Virat Kohli has got a new headache

With Shami’s fiery performance with the ball, skipper Virat Kohli has a new headache. Before Saturday’s match, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah were expected to be the three seamers in the lineup. Kumar was the highest wicket-taker in the recently concluded IPL. Umesh bowled well for his team Kolkata Knight Riders, while Jasprit is regarded as the best death-over bowler in India owing to his accurate toe-crushing yorkers. But with Shami’s performance against New Zealand, Kohli will be forced to take a tough call.