“The time after the 2023 World Cup was tough and painful” - Mohammed Shami opens up after a fiery five-wicket haul in Ranji Trophy

Star Indian pacer Mohammed Shami is aiming for a national comeback after pocketing 15 wickets in two Ranji Trophy 2025-26 games against Uttarakhand and Gujarat. While he scalped seven wickets in the first match, he picked up eight wickets in the second game.

Speaking to the reporters after the game against Gujarat, Shami emphasized that his time after the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 final was tough and painful. Nevertheless, his performances of late have given him confidence. 

"When you perform like this, it feels good both mentally and physically. Coming out of a difficult phase and performing well gives a lot of satisfaction. The time after the [2023] World Cup was tough and painful,” Shami told the press after the game.

"But then I played the Ranji Trophy, white-ball cricket, the IPL, Champions Trophy, Duleep Trophy [since his comeback late last year]. Now my rhythm is back to where it was before. I can clearly feel there's still a lot of cricket left in me,” he added.

For the unversed, Shami last played international cricket way back in the ICC Champions Trophy in March 2025. Interestingly, he was axed for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, and he wasn’t included for the Asia Cup 2025 campaign and the two-match West Indies Test series.

"This was not a comeback match for me. If you had said that last year, maybe it would have made sense. But yes, in terms of this match, what we did was a special comeback. We decided to bat for 8-10 overs today, we had already taken three points [first-innings lead]. The situation was tough, but the boys put in their full effort. To turn the game in this manner is rare, especially on this kind of wicket. It's a great job by the boys,” he concluded.

Shifting our focus to the details of the Ranji game between Bengal and Gujarat, the former posted 279 runs in the first innings. In reply, Gujarat could score only 167 runs. Later in the third innings, Bengal declared their innings at 214/8. 

In the fourth innings, Gujarat scored only 185 runs, losing the game by 141 runs. Shami pocketed a total of eight wickets in the match, including a five-wicket haul in the fourth innings.

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