'Took just six balls to show the world that he was right here' - Aakash Chopra spellbound by Mohammed Shami’s last-over heroics against Australia

Veteran pacer Mohammed Shami took on Australia in the warm-up game ahead of the T20 World Cup 2022 on Monday, October 17. Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra has opined that the pace spearhead has shown why he can fill in Jasprit Bumrah’s spot as the latter has been ruled out with an injury.

Chopra expressed his delight over Shami’s spell at the death that helped team India snatch a win from the jaws of defeat. However, the established commentator was taken aback by the decision made by the skipper Rohit Sharma to not give Shami the ball early in the fixture.

He went onto outline the importance of the player especially during the death overs and highlight what transpired in the final over.

"Mohammed Shami got just six deliveries. That's all you allowed him to bowl. We were all surprised by that. Warm-up matches are generally used to try different things and give chances to your players," said Chopra, on his YouTube channel.

"We were all hoping that Shami would get an over, but the skipper didn't do that. It looked as if India wouldn't be able to win the game when Australia needed 11 off six balls. But then, Shami came and bowled yorkers after yorkers. He bowled just one short ball, the rest were all yorkers," he added.

He showed that he can be the answer to India's problems: Aakash Chopra

It was quite a challenge for the Men in Blue to defend in the final over but Shami took matters into his own hands and changed the complexion of the game. India have struggled in the death overs as they have leaked a lot of runs in the previous encounters recently, most notably, the T20I series against Australia at home.

Chopra believes Shami could solve India's problem with the ball in the death overs. "It took just six balls for Mohammed Shami to show the world that he was right here. It was like him saying that Jasprit Bumrah might not be there, but I am here. He showed that he can be the answer to India's problems and that he can also deliver in the 20th over,” he said.