The Indian fast bowler, Mohammed Shami has said that remaining away from the team and family due to injuries has been tough for him.
The fast bowler, who remained on the sideline for 15 months due to a knee injury after the 2015 World Cup, has suffered the same injury which saw him missing the last two Tests against England in the recently-concluded Test series.
Speaking to The Times of India, the Indian pace spearhead said:“Bearing pain is the easier part. What I can’t bear easily is the whole idea of having to stay away from the action, away from my family, away from my teammates, staying alone in hotels, recovering from an injury and waiting to get back.
When asked about the injury, he said:“I’ve reached a stage when even if there’s the slightest of discomfort, it’s easy to identify it. A slight swelling, the least bit of pain and you know that you need to get it checked. Playing at that level helps you immensely because the longer you play, the easier it becomes for you to connect with your body. After the Rajkot match, I could see a bit of swelling on the knee and I immediately brought it to the coach’s notice and spoke to the captain.
The Bengal pacer was undoubtedly the standout fast bowler in the series. He constantly troubled the English players with his pace and bounce before getting injured.In the three matches that he played, he picked up 10 wickets. However, he rarely showed any excessive emotion after picking up any wicket. When enquired about it, he said:“Just do your job and go home. That’s what you’re supposed to do. That’s what I also believe in. I like to focus on work at hand. It’s very rare that you’ll see me celebrating very animatedly. I like to stay a bit relaxed. Of course, when you plan a wicket, plan against a certain batsman and it works, then the joy is evident. Like it happened when I got Alastair Cook’s wicket in the second Test (when the stump broke).”
The 26-year old said that he does not believe in statistics and concentrate only on the game plan.
“I don’t believe so much in the numbers as much as I like to focus on the job given to me. Concentrate on those two to three wickets that you’ve planned for and work on them. In the process, if it’s a five-fer, then all the better. As long as I continue to play cricket, I’ll be like this. It’ll never be about targets. It’s about the process and enjoying it,” he said.