Mohammed Shami responded to Inzamam-ul-Haq’s “ball tampering” allegation against Arshdeep Singh during the T20 World Cup 2024. In a conversation with Shubhankar Mishra on his YouTube show ‘Unplugged,’ the ace Indian pacer mentioned a similar accusation from former Pakistan cricketer Hasan Raza during the 2023 ODI World Cup.
“Wo log na to kabhi humse khush the. Aur na kabhi honge (They’ve never been happy for us. Nor will they ever be),” Shami said.
Shami said he had been accused of using a different type of ball in the World Cup. He once mentioned in an interview that he would cut the ball open one day because he still has the Player of the Match ball.
“Abhi ek namuna aur khod ke diya hai inhone ki Arshdeep ne reverse kaise kardiya (Now, there is another remark on how Arshdeep did reverse swing with the ball),” he said while referring to the former Pakistan captain’s comment.
If Pakistan can reverse-swing, they’re artists. But, if others do it, it's called ball tampering, Shami said.
Shami also found it “unexpected” for someone of Inzamam's stature to make such comments. He suggested that such “cartoonish” remarks might work somewhere else.
“It’s all a ploy to try to fool the public. They should focus more on building their skills. Doing reverse-swing is not a magic. You just have to maintain the ball well. You have to prepare it well. You have to shine the all accurately. They know it. The world knows it,” Shami added.
Nobody will do ball-tampering during a cricket match with 40 cameras around, he added. It’s possible these days.
“If you still think India did it, catch us red-handed and show it to the world. After all, you were the first to tamper with the ball. You even got caught,” Shami said.
He added that Pakistan should focus on its shortcomings and select better players to win matches instead of trying to find faults in others.
