Tabraiz Shamsi was not picked up in the IPL auction in February but has been signed as a replacement player by Rajasthan Royals.
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South African spinner Tabraiz Shamsi has openly shared the immense excitement he is experiencing, after being selected by Rajasthan Royals (RR) for the second half of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021. Shamsi has risen to No.1 in the ICC’s T20I bowling rankings, indicating his success in recent times. The spinner was not picked up in the IPL auction in February. However, he has been handed an opportunity as a replacement player, having established himself as South Africa’s first-choice short-format spinner, after waiting on the sidelines for the bulk of the early part of his career.
“I’m not going to sit here and pretend that I’m not excited about (the IPL). I am very excited. Especially because I’ve never played in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The IPL is a different thing. I have played in the past but I was a lot younger and I didn’t get a lot of game time regularly. When you get regular game time, you can showcase what you can do. You can improve,” said Shamsi as quoted by Cricinfo.
“And from a Proteas’ perspective, I’m really happy I got picked up in the IPL because I’ve never been there and played there. It will be nice if I can play on those pitches and get some inside information and gain some experience; just to be able to pick up some knowledge and information that might help us in the World Cup,” he added.
While the South African was a part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) setup in 2016, he played only four matches. The spinner had not even made his debut for the national team at that point. However, the same has changed with Shamsi now capped 68 times across all formats.
“Just yesterday I was speaking to one of my close friends about the IPL and the year that I’ve had for South Africa and I realised It’s very important to wait for your time. A lot of people who have followed me from the beginning of my career know it wasn’t just a smooth transition. I’ve had to wait a long, long time to get my opportunity to, firstly, get picked for the Proteas. And then again, for four or five years, to get regular game time. We don’t have to look at other people’s journeys,” he stated.
Shamsi emphasised on the importance of keeping on working even when you are waiting for a chance.
“From my own experience, you just have to wait for your opportunity, but while you’re waiting you have to keep on working. You can’t be sulking and down on yourself, and then your opportunity comes and you don’t grab it. Some people get 20 opportunities, others might only get one or two. You have to make sure you’re preparing and working hard, so that when your opportunity does come you grab it with both hands and live your dream.”
The South African has enjoyed more opportunities following Imran Tahir’s retirement. This has resulted in a positive impact on the player’s confidence.
“My confidence levels are up. And I believe we have one of the best bowling attacks in the world. All we need is a bit of game time. I’m not saying that because we’ve won a couple of series back-to-back. The talent in the squad is there. We might be inexperienced at the international level but it doesn’t mean that we don’t have the skill,” said Shamsi.
“We showcased that against a very strong West Indies team, and against Ireland. Nobody here wants to lose and I know the people back home don’t want to see us losing. So we’re pushing it. We just need a bit more time together. The more we play together the better we’re going to get,” he added.
