Saba Karim opens up on LSG’s acquisition of Mohammed Shami ahead of IPL 2026 auction

Former Indian wicket-keeper Saba Karim has shed light on Lucknow Super Giants’ decision to trade in Mohammed Shami from Sunrisers Hyderabad. Shami was signed by the Orange Army in IPL 2025 mega auction for INR 10 crore.

The fast bowler had scalped only six wickets in nine matches of the previous season at an average of 56.16 and economy rate of 11.23. Shami is also not part of India’s T20I team.

The Bengal pacer has struggled with his fitness woes in the last couple of years. The veteran fast bowler has scalped 15 wickets in three Ranji Trophy matches for Bengal at an average of less than 16 but he was ignored by the Ajit Agarkar-led selection for the two-match Test series against South Africa.

“This is a massive leap of faith for LSG to look at Shami to strengthen their pace bowling lineup because, at this moment, he is not even part of the Indian team in T20 cricket. His performance wasn’t anything special last year. They have done a huge trade,” Saba Karim said on Star Sports.

“They have put their entire investment to an extent on Shami. They also need to remember that Mayank Yadav is still not fully fit. No one knows anything about Mohsin Khan, whether he will be fit or not. I feel it’s a massive opportunity for Shami, but for LSG, as a franchise, they have taken a massive risk,” he added.

On the other hand, it is well known that LSG don’t have a lot of experience in their fast bowling unit and former Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara said Shami has gone to the right place as he has previously worked with former Indian bowling coach Bharat Arun.

“When he was playing for SRH, the wicket was such that any bowler would think how he would bowl four overs on that pitch. So Mohammad Shami has gone to the right place. He has worked very closely with Bharat Arun,” he said.

Lucknow Super Giants squad before auction: Abdul Samad, Ayush Badoni, Aiden Markram, Matthew Breetzke, Himmat Singh, Rishabh Pant (c), Nicholas Pooran, Mitchell Marsh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Arshin Kulkarni, Mayank Yadav, Avesh Khan, Mohsin Khan, Manimaran Siddharth, Digvesh Rathi, Prince Yadav, Akash Singh. Traded in: Mohammed Shami (from SRH).