Mohammed Shami made a thrilling cameo dragging Bengal to the quarter-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy after a win by three runs against Chandigarh.
He picked 4/30 to restrict Chandigarh to 156 for 9 in pursuit of 160. With 11 runs needed in the last over, Saya nailed his yorkers and picked up the key wicket of Nikhil Sharma while Jagjit Singh was run out, as he conceded only seven runs.
Bengal were pegged back early on with quick wickets as they were reeling at 21 for 3 in the powerplay and further fell to 114 for 8 in the 16th over.
Mohammed Shami played a cameo of 32 runs in 17 balls including three fours and two sixes while his partner Pradipta Pramanik scored 30 off 24 deliveries. His assault at the final stages of the match took Bengal to a competitive 159 for 9.
Shami then struck with his ball to dismiss Arslan Khan as the cover point fielder took a catch. Sayan Ghosh and Shahbaz Ahmed continued to chip away at regular intervals to have chasing side down at 56 for 4 to put Bengal marginally ahead.
A 45 runstand in five overs between Raj Bawa (32) and Pradeep Yadav (27) meant that Chandigarh were not down and out yet.
Sayan returned to dismiss Bawa while Kanishk Seth bagged the wicket of Pradeep yadav. Meanwhile, Shami has been working with NCA staff as he continues to top-flight cricket.
On Sunday, India captain Rohit Sharma remained cautious over Shami’s availability while insisting the ‘doors were open’ for his return.
The Indian team management is reportedly keen on flying Mohammed Shami to Australia as soon as possible, NCA is set to delay the all-clearance reports to the veteran seamer.
Shami has responded to his bowling workload and intensity all tournament. Shami opted to rest on match-eve, a decision which is believed to have been his own to preserve himself for the duration of the competition.
Bengal will play their next match Baroda on December 28 at Gymkhana Ground.
