"He has the same caliber that we hold Virat Kohli to" - Robin Uthappa hails Mohammed Shami after 5-wicket haul against Sri Lanka

Robin Uthappa paid ace pacer Mohammed Shami the highest compliment by drawing parallels with Virat Kohli following his magnificent display against Sri Lanka in Mumbai on November 2.

Shami produced figures of 5/18 to continue his rampaging run through the 2023 World Cup. It was Shami's second five-wicket haul in the three matches he has played, propelling him to 14 scalps at an extraordinary average of 6.71.

Speaking to India Today post-game, Uthappa also compared Shami to former pacers Zaheer Khan and Javagal Srinath, along with Virat Kohli.

"He is not considered a legend yet because he is still playing, Uthappa said. "There is so much left to achieve for someone like Mohammed Shami. His personality is quite similar to Zaheer bhai and Srinath Sir, who have done service for India for decades.

"So I think he is a similar kind of bowler, that same attitude, that same hunger, that same grit. He has the same caliber that we hold Virat Kohli to. What Virat Kohli is the batter to Team India, Mohammed Shami is the bowler to Team India."

Mohammed Shami also became India's leading wicket-taker in ODI World Cups with 45 scalps in a mere 14 innings. He leapfrogged the previous record of 44 held by Zaheer Khan and Javagal Srinath.

It was also Shami's third five-wicket haul in the last five ODIs, dating back to the Australian series before the World Cup.

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"He is very clinical with his approach" - Robin Uthappa on Mohammed Shami

Mohammed Shami picked up his third five-wicket haul in ODI World Cups.

Robin Uthappa attributed Mohammed Shami's success to his simple yet clinical approach on the field.

Shami picked up his third five-wicket haul in ODI World Cups and boasts a phenomenal average of 12.91 in the showpiece event. The 33-year-old has picked up at least four wickets in an incredible half of his 14 World Cup outings.

He is also sixth among leading wicket-takers in the ongoing World Cup despite playing only three of India's seven outings.

"He is very clinical with his approach, with his processes. He just does the simple things, over and over again. We just saw Virat doing that again, the hard work in those first 10 overs and capitalised later. Very similar. Shami comes out there, keeps it simple, hits the right areas and occasionally bowls bad balls. The result of any delivery is very in tune with the process," Uthappa said.

Meanwhile, Shami's heroics helped India register their biggest World Cup win by 302 runs. Thus, they become the first side to qualify for the semi-final with their seventh win in as many games.

India will take on South Africa in a mouthwatering top-of-the-table clash at Kolkata on Sunday, November 5.