'Ball ko pehle kaat': Mohammed Shami hits back at ball-tampering allegations by former Pakistan captain

The Indian team ended a 17-year wait after their first T20 World Cup win to do an encore when they defeated the Proteas in the summit clash of the T20 World Cup 2024 last month in Barbados. 

While it was an emphatic overall performance from the India team, the bowlers deserve a special mention, especially on the tricky pitches of USA where they managed to deliver the goods.

India pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh worked in tandem to dismantle oppositions, one after the other. 

However, during the tournament, former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq had accused Arshdeep of ball tampering. It came after his impressive performance of 3 wickets for 37 runs in 4 overs against Australia in the Super 8s stage. 

Inzamam hinted at foul play and urged the umpires to be more vigilant. 

Responding to the allegations against Arshdeept, veteran India pacer Mohammed Shami cleared it up. 

ALSO READ: What are you smoking? Former India star lashes out at Pakistani journalist for comparing Dhoni and Rizwan

Mohammed Shami hits back at ball-tampering allegations

Shami also recalled facing similar allegations from former Pakistani cricketer Hasan Raza during the 2023 World Cup and highlighted the recurring nature of such accusations. 

The 33-year-old Indian pacer further expressed his frustration with Pakistan's continuous allegations and stated that they will never be satisfied while clarifying that such comments are unexpected from a respected cricketer.

Speaking in a video on journalist Shubhankar Mishra's YouTube channel, Shami said,

"Woh Log humse na toh kabhi khush they or na kabhi honge. Kyunki World Cup mein mujhe koi dusri type ki ball di jaa rahi thi. Main vahi soch raha tha, us ball ko pehle kaat dein hum. Agar aisa koi platform bana, toh usko zarur kholke dikhana chahunga ki device hai ya nahin. Abhi ek aur namuna theory diya hai Arshdeep ne kaise reverse kiya." (Pakistanis were never happy with us & will never be - someone said we are being given a different ball, someone said there is a chip in the ball. If your bowlers do swing & reverse swing then it skill, if we do then, we are tampering with ball & chip on the ball.)

Mohammed Shami has been out of action since the 2023 ODI World Cup due to an ankle injury. He underwent surgery early this year and subsequently missed out on the IPL 2024 and the T20 World Cup 2024 owing to his rehabilitation.

For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram and YouTube