The 13th edition of the Indian Premier League is about to begin on September 19. All teams will be chasing the IPL trophy and record their names in the history books. Kings XI Punjab who still hasn’t won the IPL will be hoping to win this year under the leadership of KL Rahul. One important player for KXIP this year will undoubtedly be fast bowler Mohammed Shami.
The speedster who celebrated his 30th birthday yesterday will be leading the bowling attack of KXIP. Ahead of IPL 2020, Shami talked about the challenges he faced when he was restricted to his house during the lockdown.
Quarantine more difficult than 4 months at home – Shami
Interestingly Shami pointed out that 6 days quarantine in UAE to him felt more difficult than those 4 months at home. Mohammed Shami admitted that during lockdown he at least had the opportunity to train himself and fine-tune his skills which he didn’t have the luxury of doing when he landed in the UAE.
He also admitted that staying without playing could have been irritating for a professional cricketer like him but he was grateful that he had a lot of activities that helped him stay busy.
“Four months have been difficult for everyone, be it sportsman or a normal person. Thank god I had the facilities to do my training. When we came here (UAE) and got quarantined, these six days felt more difficult than those four months because in those months I was training myself, helped the needy and was busy in activities.
But in these six days, I have felt how difficult those four months must have been for people. Now it feels comfortable on the field”, Shami told ANI.
“When you are habituated to running around 24×7, it is very difficult to stay at home, especially for those who are professionals and put cricket on top of the priority list. This then irritates you and makes you uncomfortable. But touchwood for me, I had a lot of activities to stay busy with”, Shami further added.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Shami will be a key campaigner for Kings XI Punjab in the upcoming IPL. The 13th edition of the tournament will start from September 19 and will run until November 10.
