Sportstar·India·Saturday, November 7, 2026 at 04:56 AM UTC

Mohammed Shami’s top five Test spells: From Perth magic to Eden Gardens debut destruction

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Mohammed Shami’s promise with the ball was on show from his very first Test against West Indies at the Eden Gardens when he picked up nine wickets in the fixture. | Photo Credit: K.R. Deepak

Mohammed Shami’s promise with the ball was on show from his very first Test against West Indies at the Eden Gardens when he picked up nine wickets in the fixture. | Photo Credit: K.R. Deepak

Mohammed Shami announced his retirement from Test cricket on Friday, bringing the curtains down on a storied decade-long red-ball career for India.

The pacer, who played his last Test in June 2023, thanking his teammates, coaches, family, BCCI and Cricket Association of Bengal for their support throughout his career in an emotional post on his social media handles.

The 36-year-old finishes with 229 wickets from 64 Tests for India, at an average of 27.71. He registered six five-wicket hauls in a career where he confounded opponents with his ability to extract movement off the pitch and swing the ball both ways.

Here’s a look at the top-five spells in Shami’s vigil in the India whites:

Shami registered his career-best figures of 6/56 in Perth in 2018.

Shami registered his career-best figures of 6/56 in Perth in 2018. | Photo Credit: AFP

6/56 vs Australia, Perth, December 2018

Shami is often known for his efficacy in the second innings and the India vs Australia Border-Gavaskar Trophy fixture in Perth was a good example of why. After bowling 24 overs without a breakthrough in the first iteration, he proved unplayable in the second, maximising on the bounce on offer in taking the attack to the Aussie batting order.

Shami dismissed Usman Khawaja, Tim Paine and Aaron Finch in a matter of minutes in the second session in what was eventually a six-wicket haul. He conceded just 56 runs in that innings to register his career-best figures.

9/118 on debut vs West Indies, Eden Gardens, November 2013

Shami made his Test debut at the age of 23, picked ahead of the experienced Ishant Sharma (who eventually presented him with his Test cap) and Umesh Yadav. On a slow wicket, Shami managed to consistently hit the 130kmph mark, making the old ball move.

His prodigious reverse swing was on full display as he snapped up nine wickets -- six of those were bowled, one was lbw. His ability to masterfully draw out movement from the seam, tweaking his lengths masterfully to astound the visitors. The best praise came from the Windies skipper himself, Darren Sammy.

“We got the ball to move, to reverse a little bit,” he said. “The difference between our bowlers and Shami was the length. He was bowling the ball into the pitch, bowling wicket-to-wicket. When he was reversing into the right-hander, he started on a good length, outside the off stump, hitting the stumps. Our bowlers were bowling it full, under the bat, or short. We were not consistent in our line and length. He showed us how to do it. And that is the way it should be done.”

Shami’s incredible

Shami with Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma and then bowling coach Bharat Arun after helping India seal a 203-run win against South Africa in Vizag in 2019.

Shami with Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma and then bowling coach Bharat Arun after helping India seal a 203-run win against South Africa in Vizag in 2019. | Photo Credit: K.R. Deepak

5/35 vs South Africa, Visakhapatnam, October 2019

Once again, Shami went wicketless in the first bowling innings, bowling 18 overs at the expense of 47 runs. It was a tough surface for bowlers, with a combined 900-odd runs made in the first innings. Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja shared nine wickets to bowl South Africa out, with India taking a 71-run lead. India eventually South Africa a target of 394 runs to chase.

Shami then tore through South Africa, dismissing Temba Bavuma, Faf du Plessis, Wuinton de Kokc and tailenders Dane Piedt and Kagiso Rabada to set up a 203-run win.

He became the fifth Indian bowler to take five wickets or more in the fourth innings of a Test match after Karsan Ghavri, Kapil Dev, Madan Lal and Javagal Srinath.

5/28 vs South Africa, Johannesburg, January 2018

A fighting consolation win for India in Johannesburg featured remarkable performances from the pace pack. Shami took five wickets, once again in the second innings. He dismissed Aiden Markram, Vernon Philander, Andile Phehlukwayo, Morne Morkel and Lungi Ngidi to help bowl the Proteas out for 177, securing a 63-run victory.

He varied his lengths adeptly in this fixture, deploying the short ball for the openers which eventually proved Markram’s undoing, while going fuller at the lower order in order to cramp them for space. His yorker to dismiss Morkel was particularly vicious. Shami’s back-of-a-length delivery to dismiss Ngidi rang in the win.

5/44 vs South Africa, Centurion, December 2021

South Africa has been a happy hunting ground for the pacer from Bengal. In the first Test in Centurion, Shami picked up a match haul of eight wickets, of which five came in the first ask for a change.

Shami accounted for the scalps of Markram, Keegan Petersen, Bavuma, Wiaan Mulder and Rabada to help bowl South Africa out for 197, giving the visitor a 130-run first innings lead.

He then went on to dismiss Markram and Mulder again in the second essay, alongside sending back Marco Jansen in a what was eventually a 113-run win for India.

Published on Nov 07, 2026

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