Mohammed Shami urged some of the fans, who trolled Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, and Tilak Varma during the challenging situations in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026, to show their support to the team. Shami believes the team is yet to show their best performance in the tournament.
During the News 18 Rising Bharat Summit 2026 on Saturday, the veteran fast bowler showed his full support to Men in Blue ahead of their must-win match against West Indies at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
Mohammed Shami asks the Indian team management to field their best player combination
Team India, after winning all four of their matches in the group stage, suffered a 76-run defeat against South Africa. Because of this single defeat, Team India remains uncertain for the semi-finals of the ongoing T20 World Cup. They can qualify for the next stage by defeating the Caribbean on March 1, which will be a hard task to accomplish.
According to Mohammed Shami, the defending champions are yet to hit their best performance. He is expecting to see the Suryakumar Yadav-led team’s top form in the Super 8 match.
“When you play in ICC events then your best XI needs to play their best game at that level. The way the Indian team had performed in recent times, I personally feel the team is yet to hit the same mojo and I want to come in the Super 8”, Shami said at the event.
Mohammed Shami urged all Indian cricket fans to show their support
The Bengal pacer has a special appeal for the fans. The seamer asks some of the fans to stop trolling the batters for their performance. Shami asked everyone to support the team if they love the game.
“Many are trolling Abhishek, or Tilak, Surya, it’s very easy to pull down people from top to bottom. I would like to request that if you love cricket then you should support your team both in good and bad times. I personally feel the team has not delivered as per expectations, the way they have played in the lead up to the World Cup”, Mohammed Shami added.
“That performance is yet to come and I hope that in the upcoming matches we get to see that”, Mohammed Shami further expressed.
Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma will be under the lens
Abhishek Sharma had to struggle with his form throughout the group stage of the tournament. The swashbuckling batter registered three back-to-back ducks. In the Super 8 match against the Proteas, the opener got some runs, but not enough to help the team win the match.
Abhishek Sharma hinted at making a bounce back through the Zimbabwe match, where he smashed a blistering half-century. In Kolkata, when India is up against Zimbabwe, the Indian cricket community will keep its eyes on the batter. Tilak Varma would also like to play a long-standing innings to prove his haters wrong.
Read More: ‘Don’t compare him with Virender Sehwag’: Sourav Ganguly takes swipe at Abhishek Sharma
