Mahi bhai said to bowl a yorker on the stumps: Mohammed Shami

The India versus Afghanistan rivalry in 50-over cricket is turning out to be a mega draw. The two teams had a tied match at the Asia Cup in September last year. And now, in their first-ever meeting at the ICC World Cup, the two teams did their best to make it a memorable affair with India winning the statistical favor. Having struggled to reach 224 in 50 overs against a determined Afghanistan bowling attack at Ageas Bowl, Southampton, on Saturday, Virat Kohli’s team put all their experience into play to win by 11 runs at the end.

While Jasprit Bumrah received the man of the match award in the game for his game-influencing bowling, his opening partner Mohammed Shami had an unforgettable outing too. The pacer, who was playing his first match of the World Cup replacing an injured Bhuvneshwar Kumar, picked up four wickets for only 40 runs and three of those came in successive balls in the tension-filled final over of the day. Afghanistan required 16 runs to script their maiden win in this edition but Shami, after conceding a boundary, took three in three to become the second India bowler with a World Cup hat-trick.

“Simple plan. He is a bowler, there was only one option – to bowl a yorker on the stumps. Mahi bhai also said the same thing, don’t try to change anything. You have a great chance of getting a hat-trick, such chances are very rare, you have to do the same thing. I did that and I’m very happy that I got the hat-trick,” the 29-year-old Shami was quoted as saying by News18.

Shami second Indian bowler to take WC hat-trick after Chetan Sharma

The pacer first took the wicket of the dangerous Mohammad Nabi (52) who was caught by Hardik Pandya at the boundary while trying to clear the ropes and then polished off the two tail-ending batsmen Aftab Alam and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. History was created for India at the World Cup after 32 years as the last Indian bowler to take a hat-trick at the global event was Chetan Sharma who did it against New Zealand in Nagpur. That hat-trick of 1987 was the first-ever in the World Cup while Shami was the 10th man to achieve the same. Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga is the only bowler to have taken two hat-tricks in the World Cup (2007 and 2011).

Shami said there was nothing much to think about when he came to bowl the final over. With 16 needed in six balls, “you had to just execute your plans,” he said later. India next play the West Indies on June 27 at Old Trafford and another win there will secure the former champions’ place in the semi-finals.