Mohammed Shami : Australians will get a fitting reply if they sledge us

09/12/2017

Mohammed Shami has warned the Australian players that the hosts are ready to take on the fabled Aussie sledging should the visitors attempt to do so in the upcoming series against India.The Indian pacer advocated the use of sledging to break a partnership but added that profanity should not be used.

The rivalry between India and Australia is well known and has been intensified in the recent times. Earlier this year, Australia were defeated in the four-match Border-Gavaskar series in India by a score of 1-2. Along with this, there have been times when the on-field incidents which spiced up the game, be it DRS-gate or Beer-gate. Given the past incidents, both the teams led by two young and aggressive captains, Virat Kohli and Steve Smith, are going to experience some heated moments in the game when the series kicks off in Chennai on September 17.

Indian fast bowler Mohammed Shami has warned the Aussies prior to the commencement of the series, informing them that should they try to sledge the Indian players, they will get a fitting reply every time.

"Sledging is a part of the game. When your opposition has struck a partnership in the game, you sledge the batsmen to break their focus. This comes from naturally. We sledge but never using bad words. Sledging is very important when you have to dismiss a set batsman or break a partnership," Shami told India TV in an exclusive chat.

The 27-year-old pacer has been selected in the 16-member squad for the first three ODIs against Australia. He stated that the team is all set to take on the "Australian sledging. We are 100 per cent ready to take on the Australian sledging. If they sledge us, they will get the appropriate reply. It will be a tit for tat reply.

Moreover, Shami is quite confident of winning the series against Australia, since the team has been performing considerably well lately.

"I think we are performing well from the past few series. We just clean swept Sri Lanka. We are confident of winning the series," he said.

When asked whether he is making plans particularly for any of the Australian batsmen, he replied that he is simply focused on the basics.

"I have never planned against any particular batsman. I am just focused on my basics."