Former Australian spinner Brad Hogg has predicted that Indian pacer Mohammed Shami will be the biggest threat for England and will help India win the series in the UK. He also added that India have been in England for over two months, and if they lose, there will be no excuse to defend the defeat.
Mohammed Shami was terribly unlucky when India last toured England in 2018. Despite bowling well consistently, he wasn’t able to grab many wickets. But in the WTC final, the right-arm quick was the stand-out bowler for India. Unlike other Indian pacers, he was bowling within the stumps, making the batsmen play, and extracted a lot of movement from the wicket. He ended up with four wickets in the game and was a delight to watch.
Now, ahead of the marquee series against England, he is likely to play a key role in the series and is a lock for the first Test, which starts from August 4 in Nottingham. Ahead of the Test series opener, former Aussie spinner Brad Hogg has predicted that Shami will prove to be the difference for India in the series and help them emerge victoriously.
“If you look at Shami, he bowled brilliantly the last time. He was just beating the outside edge and had a couple of dropped chances. But I think Shami is going to be the bee’s knees in this series. He is the one who is going to win it for India. I think he is going to have a lot more luck if he bowls like he did in the World Test championship final,” Hogg said on his YouTube channel, reported HT.
India landed in England in June to play the WTC final and after that, there was a big break between that game and the start of the first Test against England. However, India played just a lone fixture against County XI in between. Hogg also stated that this time India wouldn’t have any excuses as they have been there in England for a long time and have also played a practice game.
“The last time India went to England in 2018, they got walloped 4-1. But this is a new series. They have been over there for two months. They have played in the World Test Championship final. They have played a lot of warm up games. So, there are no excuses. They should be adjusted to these foreign conditions.”
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