1st ODI against England Monday was Shami’s first appearance in the format after a gap of almost two years. He last played in India’s 51-run defeat to Australia in November 2020.
Shami, who claimed three wickets for 31 runs at the Oval on Tuesday, said during a conversation with bowling coach Paras Mhambrey on bcci.tv, “It was not a short break but three years.”
“Nothing was going through my mind about difference. I have become very comfortable with the team. We travel together and have been playing together for a decade.
Picking Your 15⃣0⃣th ODI Wicket In Bowling Discussed It With Bolly With @Jaspritbumrah93 @MdShami11… https://t.co/TFCATJwDwm
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“Everyone knows their job and after playing so much cricket, if a question mark comes to your mind, I believe it is not good.”
It was also a milestone match for Shami who became the fastest Indian and third fastest bowler to take 150 wickets in ODI cricket.
“Coming in with a clear mind is extremely important because you already know what you need to do, where you need to pitch the ball, white ball variations and everybody knows these basics.
“But you need to be courageous at heart and if that’s you, you can be set in any format at any time.”
Shami took three wickets, while fellow fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah The first ODI ended with a career-best 6 for 19 to shock hosts England.
“As soon as we started, the ball was stopping and seaming, it became important for us to pick our areas and keep the line and length under control.
“We played our best performance (in the first ODI), like, set an example in the way we start a series.”
Shami said it is important to keep things simple and put pressure on the batsmen from both ends.
“The only thing to be kept in mind is, if the field will be good on a pitch where it swings and seams, you tend to bowl faster from both ends and on such a wicket (the batting teams). make life difficult.
“We kept things simple, got wickets quickly and the result is in front of everyone.”
Shami feels that if the situation remains the same in the next two matches, then there is no need to change much.
“Personally, it would be best to revert to keeping it a simple principle. If the wicket behaves a little differently, you need to think a little bit more,” he added.
“If you take the confidence from here to the rest of the matches, there are chances to be more successful.
But if the wicket is dry or slow, the plan can be changed. But it is very important to bring confidence from here.”
India lead 1-0 in the three-match series.