NEW DELHI: Senior India speedster Mohammed Shami was at his brutal best, but with the bat, as he smashed a stunning unbeaten 17-ball 32 for Bengal in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali pre quarter-final against Chandigarh in Bengaluru on Monday.
Shami's onslaught that had three fours and and a couple of stunning sixes, came in the death overs as he took the Chandigarh bowlers to the cleaners.
With Bengal down and out at 114 for 8 in the 16th over, Shami came in and swung his bat like a sword, smacking the opposition bowlers to all corners of the park.
His knock came at a stunning strike rate of 188.24 as he propelled Bengal to 159 for 9 from a precarious spot.
Shami turned out to be the second highest scorer for Bengal in the game after Karan Lal's 25-ball 33 at the top.
Pradipta Pramanik scored 30 off 24 while Writtick Chatterjee fired 12-ball 28 in Bengal's score of 159 after Chandigarh invited them to bat first.
Shami is likely to be available for the last two Tests of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Australia.
However, the veteran is yet to receive fitness clearance from the NCA's medical team, which is a "matter of formality".
Since his return from a year-long injury lay-off, Shami bowled 42 overs in a Ranji Trophy game apart from playing 8 SMAT T20 games.
The TOI Sports Desk excels in a myriad of roles that capture the ...
Read MoreThe TOI Sports Desk excels in a myriad of roles that capture the essence of live sporting events and deliver compelling content to readers worldwide.
From running live blogs for India and non-India cricket matches to global spectacles featuring Indian talents, like the Chess World Cup final featuring Praggnanandhaa and the Badminton World Championships semifinal featuring HS Prannoy, our live coverage extends to all mega sporting events. We extensively cover events like the Olympics, Asian Games, Cricket World Cups, FIFA World Cups, and more.
The desk is also adept at writing comprehensive match reports and insightful post-match commentary, complemented by stats-based articles that provide an in-depth analysis of player performances and team dynamics.
We track news wires for key stories, conduct exclusive player interviews in both text and video formats, and file content from print editions and reporters. We keep track of all viral stories, trending topics and produce our own copies on the subjects.
We deliver accurate, engaging, and up-to-the-minute sports content, round the clock.
Read Less