Mohd Shami deserves Player of the Tournament award more than anyone: Yuvraj Singh
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Former Indian all-rounder Yuvraj Singh feels that senior pacer Mohammed Shami deserves to win the Man of the Tournament award more than anyone else for his phenomenal performance in the ongoing 2023 ODI World Cup.
Yuvraj, who was the Player of the 2011 World Cup, said Shami has set the stage on fire in the mega ICC event, taking 23 wickets in 6 matches and leading the wickets tally in the 2023 World Cup.
The Indian pacer achieved a remarkable feat with a seven-wicket haul against New Zealand in the semifinals, which was also the highest figure ever recorded by an Indian in ODI history.
"India always had match-winners on the bench. I won't say Hardik's injury was a blessing in disguise, but everyone was waiting to see how Shami would perform, and the way he has set the stage on fire has been outstanding. I feel if anyone deserves the Player of the Tournament award, it's Mohammed Shami," Yuvraj said while speaking to Sports Tak.
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Yuvraj also lauded captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid for their efforts in making India a dominant force in recent months.
Sharma will be playing his first ODI WC final, while head coach Dravid will get involved for the second time as he was part of the side which lost the 2003 final. Yuvraj said that the duo deserves to win the trophy.
"Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid have a chance to get their first World Cup medal. They deserve it. Before the Asia Cup, we were wondering where the Indian ODI team was because we didn't know the combination. However, the return of Iyer, Rahul and Bumrah certainly made a difference," Yuvraj added.
Yuvraj Singh represented India during a time when Australia dominated world cricket. He said that the Men in Blue now have a team full of match-winners.
"I believe that when seven batters don't get the job done, the extra batters won't make any difference. Now India has five proper batters and five proper bowlers. We have 8-10 match-winners, something which was seen in the Australian teams of the past who used to dominate."
Shami will be a significant threat to Australia in the final and will attempt to give India one more push to win the title.
