IPL 2021 | Punjab's death bowling seems better compared to last year, feels Mohammed Shami
Shami is fit and raring to go
|IPL
Mohammed Shami has stated that the new overseas additions this year will help Punjab Kings in good stead as he believes death bowling won't be a concern anymore. The pacer has further confirmed that he is fully fit and is raring to go after having recovered from the injury he suffered in Australia.
Last edition, Punjab Kings (Kings XI Punjab back then) were absolutely clueless when it came to death bowling as all three of Sheldon Cottrell, Chris Jordan, and James Neesham conceded runs beyond comprehension to undo the good work done in the previous phase.
Keeping that in mind, the franchise decided to do a complete overhaul and have added Jhye Richardson, Riley Meredith and Moises Henriques to plug that gap. Mohammed Shami feels that the issue has been addressed and the team should do well this year as far as the death bowling is concerned.
"We can't change the past. I tried my best last season and also help the fellow pacers whenever I could. We got good overseas players now. It is a stronger squad so we should do better this time," Shami told PTI.
"Your mind has to be absolutely clear in the shortest format. As a unit we did good work but lost close matches we should have won. The support staff and players were frank with each other about that. Our death bowling seems better compared to last year, so we should do better."
Shami suffered a wrist fracture while facing Pat Cummins in Adelaide during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and most of the time after that, he had to spend in NCA doing rehab. The pain, however, has subsidized since then, with the Indian pacer revealing that he is raring to go for the IPL.
"I am absolutely fine and ready to go. The injury while batting was unfortunate as I have not had fitness issues for a long time but this was something I couldn't do anything about but it is part of the game," Shami said.
"I always look at the positives. The last season was good for me and hope I can carry that form into the IPL. Because of the injury, I got more time be ready for a big tournament like the IPL. I was at NCA most of the time. I could have gone back home but because of the current COVID environment, I decided to spend more time at NCA as the facilities are much better and you can follow the COVID protocols."
Punjab Kings will kick start their campaign on April 12 against Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
