Mohammad Shami raring to perform, confident of Punjab's death bowling fire in IPL 2021

Raring to go at batsmen with his lethal pace and swing in the IPL 2021, star India pacer Mohammed Shami has thrown weight behind Punjab Kings' death bowling combination to do well in the cash-rich tournament. Highlighting that the team's death bowling arsenal has been strengthened as compared to last year, Shami expects the bowling department to fire alongside him in Punjab's title pursuit this year. Last year, Shami had led the team's bowling department but was left alone with runs leaking constantly from the other end. 

“We can’t change the past. I tried my best last season and also help the fellow pacers whenever I could. We got good overseas players now. It is a stronger squad so we should do better this time,” Shami told PTI ahead of the IPL 2021. 

Punjab has roped in Jhye Richardson, Riley Meredith and Moises Henriques to strengthen their bowling attack. The Indian pacer, who is coming off an injury, was recently released from the NCA on March 20. “I am absolutely fine and read to go. The injury while batting was unfortunate as I have not had fitness issues for a long time but this was something I couldn’t do anything about but it is part of the game,” Shami said. The Indian pacer had sustained an injury during India's tour of Australia and had to return home just after the first Test. 

“I always look at the positives. The last season was good for me and hope I can carry that form into the IPL. Because of the injury, I got more time be ready for a big tournament like the IPL. I was at NCA most of the time. I could have gone back home but because of the current COVID environment, I decided to spend more time at NCA as the facilities are much better and you can follow the COVID protocols," Shami added. 

Punjab Kings' new arsenal 

Having released explosive all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, the Punjab franchise acquired the services of ICC's number one T20I batsman Dawid Malan at his base price of INR 1.5 crores. The franchise also bought Jhye Richardson, who had a stellar BBL season, and has been roped in for INR 14 crores. Moises Henriques, Shahrukh Khan, Riley Meredith and Fabian Allen are amongst the other additions to the Punjab Kings' squad for the IPL 2021. 

IPL to begin on April 9

The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is all set to kick off on April 9 from Chennai as BCCI unveiled the schedule for the marquee event. The IPL Governing Council informed that IPL 2021 would begin at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, with defending champions Mumbai Indians taking on the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). After nearly two years, the IPL extravaganza will return home with Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai & Kolkata hosting the marquee event.

The final of IPL 2021 will be played at the newly inaugurated Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on May 30, making it the first-ever IPL game to be played at the venue. Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata & Bengaluru will host 10 matches each while Ahmedabad and Delhi will host 8 matches each, between April 9 and May 30. In addition, every team is set to play at a neutral venue and all teams will play at 4 out of 6 venues during the league stage. 

Image Credits: BCCI/IPL