Mohammed Shami

Mohammed Shami bent the new ball and tormented batters with late movement that made him one of the most dangerous Indian seamers of his era on home soil. His upright wrist position and rhythm at the crease were signature assets, letting him swing the ball into right-handers while his scrambled-seam delivery stayed a threat on flat decks. Few modern Indian quicks can match his home Test record, where he took control of matches in conditions that usually favour spin.

A serious knee injury threatened his career after the 2015 World Cup, but he returned stronger from surgery. His five for 69 against England at Birmingham in the 2019 World Cup, a tournament in which he also took a hat-trick against Afghanistan, showed his big-stage appetite, and in 2023 he was the World Cup's leading wicket-taker with 24 wickets in just seven matches, including seven for 57 against New Zealand in the semi-final. In Tests he produced spells like his six for 56 in Perth in 2018, hostile fast bowling on the bounciest surface in the game.

In the IPL he has turned out for Delhi, Punjab Kings, Gujarat Titans and Sunrisers Hyderabad, taking well over a hundred wickets. He has dealt with personal setbacks and long injury lay-offs, including the ankle surgery that followed the 2023 World Cup, but retained a reserved, almost monastic obsession with his craft. With more than 400 international wickets, he stands among India's finest fast bowlers.