Why Mohammad Shami is the weak link in the Indian Test bowling line-up

Mohammed Shami may have played all the five Tests against England but he is indeed the weak link in the fast bowling department. With Bhuvneshwar Kumar about to return to full fitness, here's an analysis why Mohammed Shami is the man he should be replacing.

#1 Fitness

A fast bowler running in hard as he approaches the bowling crease is one of the most pleasing sights in world Cricket. Michael Holding was nicknamed 'Whispering Death' because even the umpires weren't aware that the great man had started his run up and almost reached the wickets.

Kapil Dev, Richard Hadlee and Glenn McGrath had some of the most graceful approaches to the crease. Brett Lee. Shoaib Akhtar and Zaheer Khan were full of energy as they ran up to wreak havoc.

On the other end of the spectrum, we had Mohammad Asif, whose run-up was so laboured, I, at times, thought that he'd never make it to the bowling crease.

Sandwiched in between is Mohammad Shami. When he first burst onto the scene, he had an elegant approach to the crease to go along with the ability to reverse swing the ball with deadly efficiency as the touring West Indies found out in 2013.

Since then, his run-up seems strained and he has lost quite a bit of pace. He has also put on weight which is never a good sign for an athlete, let alone a fast bowler.

While he retains the ability to make the ball talk off the surface, the only reason I can think of for the aforementioned anomalies is that he is not fully fit.

It's often said that fast bowlers are crazy creatures. One has to be a maverick to become one. The great Wasim Akram says that a fast bowler's fitness can only be judged with regards to his on-field displays. It is also pertinent to note that Akram thinks that Shami needs to sort his run-up out. Shami, at present, doesn't seem to have peak fitness.

#2 Economy

England v India: Specsavers 4th Test - Day One

It is often said that the economy doesn't matter if a bowler is picking wickets. In the limited overs context, we've heard legendary captains say that a bowler who takes 3 wickets for 60 runs is more important than a bowler who takes 1 for 30. This is the reason why there is a resurgence of wrist spinners in the last 2-3 years in world Cricket. This is the reason why Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal get the nod over the experienced duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.

There are times in a Test match when a bowling unit needs to attack and at times the bowling unit needs to defend. Shami's economy suggests that he struggles when the team needs him to provide a few quiet overs to help its cause.

In the recently concluded series against England, Shami bowled 173 overs over 10 innings and gave away 622 runs at an economy of 3.60 whilst other fast bowlers (Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav) bowled 308 overs giving away 876 runs at an economy of 2.84. To put things into perspective, the strike rate of English batsmen against Shami was 60 while their strike rate against other fast bowlers was 47.5. This means Shami gave away 1 run more than the others for every 8 balls bowled.

As a matter of fact, the much-maligned Umesh Yadav had an economy of 3.17 in the two innings he bowled.

If Shami was picking up wickets for fun, his economy rate would have been acceptable and selection in the team would have been justified. The fact is that he isn't (as discussed in the next slide) and he needs to be replaced.

#3 Wickets per innings

Shami bowled in all 9 innings that the English batted (the second Test was an innings victory), picking up 16 wickets at an average of 1.78 per innings.

The other fast bowlers turned out 17 times (India played the second Test with only two fast bowlers) and picked up 35 wickets at an average of 2.06 per innings.

Here again, Shami's stats fall short of the stats of his peers.

#4 Strike rate

England v India: Specsavers 2nd Test - Day Three

As mentioned earlier, Shami bowled 173 overs in the series which translates to 1038 balls picking up 16 wickets. His strike rate is about 65 balls per wicket.

The other fast bowlers bowled 308 overs (1848 balls) in the series picking up 35 wickets. Their strike rate is 53 balls per wicket. This means that Shami needs to bowl two overs (12 balls) more than the rest of the pack to pick up a wicket.

Shami's stats, when compared with the man he kept out of the side, Umesh Yadav (strike rate 48 balls per wicket) are again not up to the mark.

#5 Putting a price on his wicket

England v India: Specsavers 5th Test - Day Five

It is not every day that I agree with the views of former India batsman and current commentator Sanjay Manjrekar who, when Shami played a reckless shot to be dismissed by Adil Rashid at a crucial juncture in India's first innings in the fifth Test, opined that he should be punished by being demoted to number 11. Whilst I think the word 'punished' is harsh, I do agree with the sentiment.

Cricket has evolved a lot in the past decade and even the bowlers are now expected to chip in with the bat. Especially in Test Cricket, bowlers who put a price on their wicket are being appreciated. In the same innings, the great Harsha Bhogle praised Jasprit Bumrah relentlessly for surviving a testing over from Stuart Broad by doing what it takes, blocking the ball with a straight bat, leaving the ball on length and taking a blow on the body, if necessary.

Test Cricket is a lot about determination and temperament and Shami seems to lack the will to fight it out for the team the ugly way like Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah. He seems intent to play one way and not bother much about the situation. That's not what you expect from your bowlers these days and that's certainly not what we'd get from Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

As such, I believe, Shami should be the one Bhuvneshwar Kumar should replace once he's fully fit.