Shami could give India the cutting edge they need

Kolkata: Mohammad Shami knew he would be making his Test debut at the Eden Gardens today but MS Dhoni did not let the rest of the world in on his plans at the pre-series press conference on Tuesday. “We want Shami to improve his fitness further,” Dhoni said “[So] when he comes into Test cricket, he’ll able to bowl those long spells.” Shami’s fitness levels, it seems, are just fine already. Early on Wednesday morning India’s cricket loving-fans were brought up to speed when Ishant Sharma, somewhat ironically, handed Shami his Test cap before the start of the play. By the end of the day, it looked like a masterstroke. Shami’s figures of 4 for 71 is the best debut bowling performance by an Indian for 46 years, matching those of Venkatesh Prasad in his first innings. To better those numbers you have to go back to Syed Abid Ali’s 6 for 55 in 1967 against Australia. Most of the damage was done with Shami bowling reverse swing at speeds approaching 140 kph, and the West Indies batsmen did not have the footwork to cope. [caption id=“attachment_1214725” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Shami’s figures of 4 for 71 is the best debut bowling performance by an Indian for 46 years. BCCI[/caption] Bhuvneshwar Kumar was actually the better of the two with the new ball, prising out the crucial wicket of Chris Gayle with a delivery that left the batsman and took the edge on its way to second slip. Shami did dismiss a set Kieron Powell with a bouncer, but it was a poor shot by the batsman and a good catch by Bhuvneshwar running backwards from extra cover. After his first two spells, Shami had figures of 1 for 39 from seven overs; no sign there of what was to come. Meanwhile Darren Bravo, who was intent on defending for most of his innings, and Marlon Samuels, were largely untroubled in taking West Indies to 107/2 at lunch. Report: Hometown hero Shami cuts Windies down to size Stats: Shami Ahmed makes best debut by Indian pacer in 46 years Quote: You’ll also see Shami bowl delivery that reverses away - Coach From Eden Gardens: How Tendulkar milked the crowd at Eden Gardens Report: Selector who picked Sachin in 89’ ignored by BCCI, CAB It was after the ball was replaced at 40 overs that Dhoni brought Shami back on and it paid off almost immediately. Samuels had been aggressive in making 65, of which 56 had come in boundaries. He shaped to drive a good length delivery on the up through cover but the ball darted back off the seam and crashed into middle stump, causing Samuels to fall over and end up on his hands and knees. He had literally been laid low by Shami. “The first ball was softer and I wasn’t able to get a lot of swing with it,” Shami said at the press conference after the day’s play. “But after the ball was changed, it started swinging and reversing. It was a great feeling to bowl with the changed ball as well watch others bowl.” After Bravo ran himself out, Shami produced an almost identical delivery to knock over Denesh Ramdin’s off stump. The batsman was stuck on the crease trying to cut a ball that was too close to his body and suddenly the West Indies tail had been exposed. From 138 for 2, they had slumped to 143 for 5 and India had the upper hand. The spinners, including a two-over cameo from Tendulkar that produced a wicket, then got into the act, winnowing out the next four batsmen. But Dhoni turned to his fast bowlers to wrap up the innings and Shami did not disappoint with another delivery that reverse swung into No 11 Sheldon Cottrell and sent his offstump flying. While Shami was the most expensive of India’s bowlers – his economy rate was 4.17, nobody else’s was over 3 – his skiddy action, willingness to bowl at the stumps and his pace make him a threat with the new and old ball. He was admittedly helped by some poor shot selection today, but he can provide the sort of cutting edge in the later stages of an innings that India has been missing since Zaheer Khan was dropped. Shami can give away runs – his economy rate in the Australia ODI series was 6.62 – but he had by far the best strike rate (20.7) and average (22.85). It was the same story in this innings. “Only the (jersey) colour changes (in Test format). There’s no alteration in basic line and length bowling. There wasn’t any plan as such. My strength lies in line, length and swing. I don’t change my technique as per opponents. I just did my job. Nothing more than that,” he said. Before the Test, Darren Sammy talked about how it was important his is a more experienced Test side than the last time they toured India back in 2011. By contrast, India’s bowling attack had played a total of 42 Tests between the four of them, of which the two spinners accounted for 38. Yet in the end, it would turn out to be the man with the least experience who made the biggest difference.