India vs South Africa: Mohammed Shami in elite company after taking 200 wickets in Centurion Test

Mohammed Shami picked up a five-wicket haul against South Africa on day 3 of the Centurion Test but in the process, he reached 200 wickets.

Mohammed Shami (Image credit: Mohammed Shami Twitter)
By Siddharth vishwanathan | Dec 29, 2021 | 3 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Mohammed Shami stole the show on day 3 of the Centurion Test against South Africa. In a brilliant spell of fast bowling, Shami ensured that South Africa never came close to India. The right-arm pacer took 5/44, his sixth five-wicket haul as India took a lead in excess of 100. The exploits of Mohammed Shami saw him reach 200 wickets in Tests, that too in just his 55th Test.

Hailing from Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh, Mohammed Shami has had a tough couple of years. In 2015, his career appeared to be at a crossroads. Shami suffered a serious knee injury in the aftermath of the ICC World Cup. Since then, he along with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Ishant Sharma have formed a formidable quartet of bowlers.

In the press conference after the end of day 3, Shami said the hard work during the last 6-7 years helped him immensely. “If India’s pace bowling is so strong, it’s come on the backs of our own skills. We’ve all come here having built our strengths. We’ve had support staff who’ve always been with us, to support our skills, but you can’t name one person. It’s the result of the work we’ve put in over the last 6-7 years. So, I give credit to that hard work, and the credit should always go to the person who’s put in that hard work,” Shami said.

Read | Virat Kohli has been giving his wicket away frequently: Ashish Nehra

Mohammed Shami in an elite list

Mohammed Shami became the ninth Indian bowler to reach 200 wickets in Tests. The fact that he achieved it in his 55th Test put him in an elite list of Indian bowlers. Although he is not the fastest Indian or world bowler to get to the mark, he has established himself as one of the best bowlers in the business. Here is the list of Indian bowlers who were the fastest to 200 wickets in Tests.

PlayerMatchesOpponentYear
Ravichandran Ashwin37New Zealand2016
Ravindra Jadeja44South Africa2019
Harbhajan Singh46Zimbabwe2005
Anil Kumble47Zimbabwe1998
Bhagwath Chandrasekhar48Australia1977
Kapil Dev50West Indies1983
Bishan Singh Bedi51England1977
Javagal Srinath54South Africa2001
Mohammed Shami55South Africa2021

Shami and the fearsome quartet of Indian pacers

In the last four years, India has been boosted by a magnificent fast bowling quartet that is on par with the rest of the world. New Zealand, West Indies, and Australia have always boosted great fast bowlers along with Pakistan. But, if there is one bowling attack that has delivered consistently overseas, it has been India. The success of Shami, along with Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and now Mohammed Siraj have boosted India’s profile ever since 2018. It is the success of the quartet that has seen them win two series in Australia and on the cusp of a series win in England. If they conquer South Africa, then they would only have to do well in New Zealand to complete ‘Mission World Domination.’ Here are the contributions of the quartet in the last four years in overseas conditions.

PlayerMatchesWicketsAverageBest haulFive-wicket hauls
Jasprit Bumrah208622.986/334
Mohammed Shami196827.476/563
Ishant Sharma134723.385/512
Mohammed Siraj82830.675/731

Shami’s exploits have put India on course to breach the Centurion fortress against South Africa. If they win this match, they will then head to Johannesburg. This is a venue where they have never lost a Test in 29 years of touring South Africa.





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