World Cup 2023: Mohammed Shami's performance should force Team India to redraw their strategy

Mohammed Shami has shown India a new way of playing in the World Cup 2023. A forced inclusion into the side due to an ankle injury to Hardik Pandya , Shami roared and raged at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala to take a fifer in his first match of the tournament. World Cup 2023: News | Schedule | Results | Points table With his sensational spell of 5/54, Shami now has 36 wickets in just 12 World Cup matches at an impressive average of 15.02 and he is the only Indian bowler to have two five-wicket hauls at the highest level in the 50-over format. Most importantly, he is 13th in the list of all-time wicket-takers in ODI World Cups, but has the best strike rate amongst all – 17.69. What it shows is that there’s no substitute for Shami. For any other team, the 33-year-old pacer would have been the first choice. He is not just a disciplined fast bowler but one with the best upright seam action who can move the ball off the seam, swing it both ways, and also reverse.

It’s actually because of the current strategy that Shami is warming the bench. With Shardul Thakur at No. 8, India have a part-time pacer who can also bat. This allows the Men in Blue to have enough batting and bowling cover. But can Shardul win you a match or two on his own? Shami can. As he showed in Dharamsala. If not for Shami’s fifer, New Zealand would have easily got to 300-plus which could have been a match-winning score. Three of Shami’s five wickets came in the death overs including that of the centurion Daryl Mitchell. He also struck in all phases of the match. Will Young fell on his first ball of the match in the ninth over and Rachin Ravindra became his victim in the 34th over. **World Cup: Top five moments from India vs New Zealand** Despite being a senior pacer in the side, missing the first four matches of World Cup 2023, and taking fifer on return to underline his credentials, Shami doesn’t hold any grudges. “When you are not playing, it is very difficult. But if your team is performing, your boys are moving in a rhythm, then I don’t think you should feel guilty sitting outside,” Shami said after the New Zealand match . “Because you are also a part of the team and a part of the World Cup. I think everyone should enjoy each other’s success.” He’s right. India are winning and there’s little to complain, but Shami’s performance highlighted that India can be more aggressive and ready for big matches. Had New Zealand got to 300-plus, considering how India’s chase went, a win for Kiwis on the night would have been a strong possibility. It was stopped with a fifer by a bowler who was your fifth-choice in the match after four regulars – Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, and Ravindra Jadeja – who are all match-winners and can’t also be sacrificed. Now that’s a performance neither Hardik nor Shardul could have given you. So what’s the harm in redrawing your strategy? Thakur gives you a safety cushion, but Shami gives you the winning edge. And after his performance in Dharamsala which helped India beat the Black Caps in ICC events for the first time in two decades , it’s imperative that India pick him in the playing XI. Hardik can be the sixth bowler, a move that will strengthen India’s bowling, and the all-rounder’s superior batting skills would continue to give India more steel in batting lower down the order. It’s to be seen whether coach Rahul Dravid and captain Rohit Sharma opt to stay bold or go back to their preferred safe approach but one mustn’t forget that it’s lack of cutting edge and aggressiveness that’s held India back in the big games on the big stages.