'A Great Love Story': Piyush Chawla Applauds Shami's Tenacity After Supreme Bowling Display vs BAN In Champions Trophy Opener

Former Indian cricketer Piyush Chawla opened up on the cracking spell of Mohammed Shami, which hit the Bangladesh batters like a whiplash. Chawla applauded the pacer's five-wicket haul and how well he assessed the conditions to make it work in his favour. He also pointed out that Shami looked rusty in the bilaterals while heading into the ICC Champions Trophy, but he was a beast unleashed in Dubai.

Piyush Chawla Heaps Praise On Mohammed Shami's String Outing vs BAN

The resurgence of Mohammed Shami was a sight to behold. Team India's superstar pacer returned to the ICC tournaments with the Champions Trophy 2025 after featuring in the ODI World Cup 2023. Shami stood like a tank and squashed Bangladesh's momentum when India needed it the most. Piyush Chawla opened up on the India Pacer's dominant spell against the Bangla Tigers, but he also said that the fans are yet to witness Shami in top gear.

"ICC tournaments and Mohammed Shami — it's a great love story. Whenever he plays in an ICC tournament, he turns into a different bowler altogether. He’s coming back from injury, and while he looked a bit rusty in the recent bilateral series, the positive sign was that he was getting his overs in. Today, he looked much better.

"We are yet to see a 100% Shami, but this five-wicket haul will definitely boost his confidence. It’s crucial to assess the conditions, and Shami, with his upright seam position, knows exactly where to pitch the ball. He consistently hit the six-to-eight-meter mark, which allowed him to get movement off the surface. That’s why he was successful, picking up early wickets with the new ball. It was also great to see him using variations, including well-disguised slower balls," Piyush Chawla said during an appearance on JioHotstar.

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India Veteran Expresses On Rohit Sharma's Relief After KL Rahul's Catch Was Dropped

Piyush Chawla also opened up on the huge blunder which probably cost Bangladesh the match when KL Rahul's catch was dropped by Jaker Ali. The former cricketer said that the skipper understood the importance of KL's wicket at a critical stage as he played a vital role in forging a partnership with Shubman Gill.

"We all know how crucial KL Rahul’s dropped catch was, and we saw Rohit Sharma’s reaction to it. He knew how much that moment meant. Rahul was on just 9 runs at the time, and from there, he went on to score a vital 41. Those 30-odd runs were extremely important as he built a crucial partnership with Shubman Gill," Chawla added.

With Bangladesh in the rearview mirror, Team India will now face off against their arch-nemesis Pakistan at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday, February 23, 2025.

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