It was a “prized wicket” for Umar Nazir Mir but being a fan of Rohit Sharma, the Jammu and Kashmir pacer said he could not bring himself to celebrate the high-profile dismissal in the Ranji Trophy clash against defending champions Mumbai on Thursday. The 31-year-old rattled Mumbai with his 4/41 on the opening day of their Group A clash and among those he sent back was the India captain, whose prolonged lean run continued in his first Ranji appearance in a decade.
Nazir used the moisture on a fresh wicket here at the BKC Ground to great effect, dismissing Mumbai captain Ajinkya Rahane (12), Shivam Dube (0) and Hardik Tamore (7) along with Rohit in a display of fine seam bowling.
“A good ball is a good ball against any player, you don’t look at the stature of the player, but Rohit Sharma’s wicket is a big one, I am happy,” Nazir told media after the end of play.
“The first thought in my mind was…I did not celebrate, as a fan of Rohit Sharma. I know he is something, even though I dismissed him. I am a big fan of Rohit Sharma.
“(Even) if we win this game, it would be a proud moment because India’s captain is playing in the opposition,” added Nazir, who was a member of the J&K side which beat a star-studded Mumbai in their Ranji Trophy clash here at the Wankhede Stadium a decade ago.
Apart from moving the ball sideways, Nazir said hitting the right length at a spot just ahead of the good length was the right approach on the first day here which helped him produce extra bounce too, that ended Rohit’s stay after 3 runs off 19 balls.
“When you dismiss an international player, it is always a prized wicket. There was some help from the surface, I tried to bowl in right areas. Rohit Sharma is a big name and his wicket was important for us and for me, personally, as well,” he said.
Nazir said there were no butterflies in his stomach going to bed the night before the game, knowing that Mumbai has several other India players such as Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rahane, Shreyas Iyer and Shardul Thakur.
“I slept off at 10pm last night and woke up around 7am and I was relaxed,” he quipped.
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