New Delhi: Mohammad Shami bent his back through day three of the third and final Test against Sri Lanka on Monday at the Kotla, but his efforts on a lifeless pitch earned him just one wicket in 13 overs. Asked if the track had blunted India’s push for a win, the burly pacer said they would have preferred livelier surfaces ahead of the upcoming South Africa tour.
“The kind of wickets we wanted to prepare on before going to South Africa, we haven’t been provided with. So it didn’t go as per our plans. But it’s a good thing that on these kind of tracks, you need to work hard as a bowler. They also test your fitness as you get to bowl long spells. Overall as a bowling unit, all of us have together bowled more than 100 overs (130 overs in all so far in the innings). So you can gauge how much effort we are putting in.”
Asked if the pollution, at higher levels on the day than on Sunday, had affected their performance, Shami said, “I had a bit of a cold even before the match started. Yes, pollution is an aspect that we seriously need to think about. But what was being portrayed (by Sri Lanka), it wasn't to that extent.
“Also it could be that we are more used to (pollution) it and our ability to adjust is much more compared to them. I think we need to check what are the reasons of pollution and try to minimise it. Look we are used to suffering from all these problems.”
Did the hatful of dropped catches affect the four-man attack? “Fielders are not machines that they will grab anything that comes their way. Yes, you might get angry when a catch is dropped but it’s a part and parcel of the game.”
