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Bowler Mohammed Shami earned plaudits from Bengal coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla after his stunning display in their Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh.
After a year of absence due to an ankle injury, Shami on Thursday made his much-awaited return to competitive cricket in the Ranji Trophy. The seasoned speedster missed out on a call for the Border Gavaskar Trophy but has started to make a case for his availability if needed. In his first appearance after last year's ODI World Cup, Shami looked close to his best, giving a sense of relief to the prying eyes that were waiting for his comeback. He bowled 19 overs in the first innings and returned with impressive figures of 4/54, putting Bengal in a strong position at the Holkar Stadium. Laxmi Ratan Shukla was left amazed by the way Shami went about his business and knows the right-arm pacer will soar to new levels as he continues to play more games. "Someone has come back after one year and has bowled 19 overs and taken so many wickets... what's there to say? He came into the match without doing any match simulation. Can you imagine? But obviously, if he plays more, he will get better," Laxmi said as quoted from ICC. Initially, Shami was economical, with figures of 0/34 in 10 overs. He took it slowly and bowled in two spells, with one made up of four overs in which he gave away 16 runs and another one of six overs in which he spilt 18 runs. But in the second half, Shami grew more in confidence and rattled the hosts with his mesmerizing pace. He majorly dealt blows in the middle and the tail end of Madhya Pradesh's batting order. MP skipper Shubham Sharma was the biggest fish he caught during his competitive return. He cleared the tail-end by removing Saransh Jain, Kumar Kartikeya and Kulwant Khejroliya. "He bowled one six-over spell and one five-over spell. Players who bowl in the IPL don't even know how to bowl more than four overs. He bowled the sort of spells fast bowlers are expected to. I have never seen a fast bowler come back so strongly after one year away. What he did today is like a fairy tale," Laxmi added. (ANI)
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