Indian fast bowler Mohammed Shami on Wednesday revealed that even Indian skipper Virat Kohli enjoys watching Rohit Sharma bat. In an exclusive conversation with India TV in a Live Instagram session, Shami came up with a savage reply when a fan asked him who between Kohli and Rohit is a better batsman.
Both the batters are stalwarts when it comes to limited-overs cricket with the two dominating the runs chart over the last few years while also being instrumental in India's success in the two formats. And Shami stressed on that very point when a fan asked to compare between the two during the live chat.
"Both have different batting numbers, have different batting styles, and both have a different approach towards the game. One is aggressive. The other is calm. If you even ask Virat, he will admit that he enjoys watching Rohit bat. And not just for Virat, that is the case for any other batsman in the world. But if you ask me, I wouldn't as they are at the top. I would only urge people to not ask such questions and try to create controversies," said Shami.
The veteran bowler then recalled his historic World Cup hat-trick that he had bagged last summer in England admitting that it is his dearest moment in his career and that he misses the moment.
Shami had managed the historic feat against Afghanistan in the league stage match. He became the second Indian to take a World Cup hat-trick after Chetan Sharma and the 10th bowler overall. While Mohammad Nabi was caught by Hardik Pandya, both Aftab Alam and Mujeeb Ur Rahman were clean bowled.
Shami recalled his historic achievement when asked about his favourite spell. While he mentioned his spell in South Africa Test series in 2018 and that in Perth in the same year in Test cricket, he also mentioned his World Cup hat-trick. "There are very few people who have taken a World Cup hat-trick. I can never forget that moment and I always miss that," he said.
Shami's heroics helped India win the match and eventually proceeded to the semifinal round.
He also talked about ICC's contemplation of banning the use of saliva to shine the ball in the post COVID-19 world in a bid to lessen the transmission of the virus. And Shami, unlike most other cricketers, said that it would be the best possible solution and that since both the teams will have to follow the rule, he reckons that it "will be acceptable."
"I will still wait for the official announcement. But following the pandemic, I feel the non-usage of saliva will be the best solution. And whatever is the solution then, that would be applicable for both the teams. So, in a way it would be acceptable," he explained.
Shami also said that he would prefer IPL before World T20 in a bid to prepare themselves for the big tournament.
"Would prefer IPL before T20 World Cup. Both are of the same format. And if IPL is not possible, then there should be some T20 matches to help us gain that rythym."
(With inputs from India TV Sports Correspondent Vaibhav Bhola)
