A smooth run-up, a steady acceleration, a jump that positions the body perfectly to release the ball, and a good follow-through makes a perfect medium-fast bowler. These words completely suit Mohammed Shami. While Shami’s run-up and action are fairly smooth, the secret behind his success lies in his wrist. Few pace bowlers in the world can claim to have the wrist strong and straight behind the ball every single time they bowl. Shami is one of them. In this blog, we will explore the life of Mohammed Shami, his age, stats, net worth, wife, records, achievements, etc.

Mohammed Shami Biography

Early days

Mohammed Shami's father Tousif Ali was a fast bowler during his days. Shami is one of the four brothers from his family and each of them wanted to become a fast bowler but it was Shami who turned out to be the only one to have made the cut.

Shami hails from a village in Amroha, Uttar Pradesh but he plays for Bengal in domestic cricket and there's an interesting story behind it.

In 2005, Shami’s father got to know about his bowling abilities and took him to Moradabad, which is 22 km from their village, to train him under a cricket coach named Badruddin Siddique. Shami was 15-year old and after knowing about his ability of bowling at good pace, Badruddin counselled his father to send him to Kolkata, where he began playing for Dalhousie Athletic Club.

Cricketing Career

He was under the apprenticeship of Debabrata Das in Kolkata to the degree of staying under his roof and made it to the U-22 Bengal side. After a specially conducted net session supervised by Sourav Ganguly, he was recognised as a gem and after a tough grind through the ranks, he got his chance to play from Bengal at the Ranji Trophy.

International Cricket

Proving his mettle at domestic level, Shami was selected for the West Indies A tour in 2012, where he impressed with his speed on flat surfaces. Days after days, he was proving to be one of the stand-out and versatile bowlers in the Indian domestic stint.

In 2013, Shami donned the blue jersey. Slowly but surely, he started to make noteworthy contributions in the Indian National Cricket team. With his ability to reverse, he became an indispensable asset to the limited-overs side, becoming the second-fastest Indian to 50 ODI wickets. World Cup 2015 proved the best tournament for him as he took 17 wickets becoming one of the highest wicket-takers in the tournament. He played the World Cup despite a knee injury.

Also Read | Top 10 Best Wicket Keeping Gloves

Shami Test Career

Mohammed Shami made his Test debut against West Indies in November 2013 at Eden Gardens. He had a stellar debut, grabbing 9 wickets, the most by an Indian pacer on debut. Shami had a poor series at the 2014 tour of England with 5 wickets in 3 matches. He was a part of the 19-member squad for Border Gavaskar Trophy in Australia in 2014-15 where he played 3 matches and bagged 15 wickets.

Being a great artist of reverse swing along being equally good with the new and old ball, he is a potent fast bowler. He is a speedster who clocks the ball above 140 kph.

Shami’s Entry in IPL

Mohammed Shami entered IPL when he was signed by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the 2011 season of the league. However, Shami played a handful of matches in that season. He was retained by KKR in the next two seasons and was a part of the team that won the title in 2012.

In 2014, Delhi Daredevils bought him for Rs 4.25 crore. He was retained by the franchise in the 2015 edition of the IPL. He got good pace and bowled at 140 kmph and above. In the 11th season of IPL (2018), he signed the contract with Delhi Daredevils. In 2019, Kings XI Punjab roped him in for Rs 4.40 crore. During the IPL Auction 2023, the Ahmedabad team secured Mohammad Shami’s talents for a sum of Rs 6.25 Cr.

Mohammed Shami was acquired by Sunrisers Hyderabad at the IPL 2025 auction for INR 10 crore in salary. For Shami, this is the highest salary in his career.

Mohammed Shami Family | Wife

Shami tied the knot with Hasin Jahan in 2014, and they are parents to one child. In 2020, Shami opened up about how injuries and a series of accusations from his wife took a toll on his mental well-being. He revealed contemplating suicide three times during that period and attributed his family to providing the support he needed to get through it.

Also Read: Detailed Analysis of India’s Squad For World Cup 2019

Mohammed Shami’s Net worth

He receives a salary of Rs. 5 crore from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) as part of his Category A contract. Likewise, he also adds his net worth from endorsing several brands. As of 2023, Mohammed Shami’s net worth is estimated to be around INR 47 crores.

Injuries and Comebacks

Being a fast bowler, it is sure to get injured. Mohammed Shami played the complete World Cup 2015 with pain and swelling in his left knee. After almost six months of the surgery, Shami started playing cricket again and was a part of the 2015 Vijay Hazare and Syed Mushtaq Ali trophies. He missed the Asia Cup, South Africa’s tour of India, and got injured in the middle of England and New Zealand’s tour of India.

He was selected for India’s tour of South Africa and took 15 wickets in the 3-match series. In June 2018, he agonized again because of fitness.

Once again, he came back to the Indian side and this time with some supreme fitness. He was part of the 10 out of 11 Test matches that India played against England, West Indies and Australia.

Mohammed Shami Career Stats

• Bowling

• Batting & Fielding

Also Read | Top 20 Bowlers with most test wickets in the world cricket

Mohammed Shami Records

• He has the best figures for an Indian fast bowler on his Test Debut (9-118).
• Shami is the fastest Indian bowler to take 100 One Day International wickets (56 Innings).
• Mohammad Shami along with Bhuvaneshwar Kumar made a second highest partnership for 10th wicket by Indians (110 runs).
• He is the 10th Indian bowler to pick 100 away Test wickets.
• Shami holds the record of being the second fastest Indian bowler to fifty ODI wickets.

The Name Game