India might have lost in the semi-final of the ICC World Cup, but there were several top quality performances from the ‘Men in Blue’ which saw them finish at the top of the table after the round robin matches. One such top performer was Mohammed Shami, who made the most of the limited opportunities he got. Shami was drafted into the playing XI after first choice paceman Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up an injury in the match against Pakistan.
Shami in his first match of the tournament against Afghanistan rewrote the history books by becoming only the second India to pick up a hat-trick in the ICC World Cup, ending the match with figures of 4/40. He retained his spot in the team as a result of the performance and wreaked havoc again, picking up another 4-for as India outclassed West Indies.
The medium pacer would go on to pick up a five-wicket haul against England, but India went on to lose the match. The outing against Bangladesh, where he finished with figures of 1/68 turned out to be his last in the tournament as he was overlooked for the last round robin match against Sri Lanka and the crucial semi-final against New Zealand.
Shami though ended the tournament as the bowler with the best strike-rate and best average, for those with 6 wickets or more. The 28-year-old picked up 14 wickets in 4 matches at an average of 13.78 and a fearsome strike rate of 15. With this kind of performance Shami has surely revived his white ball career.
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