Earlier today, Mohammed Shami confirmed the demise of his father Tousif Ali, who succumbed to a cardiac arrest in a Delhi hospital on Friday. The 26-year-old was forced to return to the city from the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, where he was training in order to make a swift return to the Indian team post injury.
In a conversation with Sportskeeda, Shami's brother Mohammed Asif expressed the distraught state of the family.
Asif said, “He wasn’t well in Moradabad for a long time, then we had to shift to Delhi for his treatment. Bhai (Brother) came back once in early January itself before leaving for Bengaluru. Certain members of the family asked him to stay, but he replied that India is as much of a father to him and he couldn’t deny that duty either.
“He was very emotional, but decided to go back to training, knowing that his recovery ahead of the Australia series is paramount for the national team’s plan there. Now, I know that he’s going to give his best performance till date in his next series.”
Shami chose not to comment on his tragic loss, and stayed away from the media. However, his brother confirmed that this incident has left Shami reeling. He added, “I’m sure he must be thinking in his head that he could have stayed back, but he made the right decision.
“Abbu (Father) really respected his profession, and would’ve asked him to do the same. Cricket was in his blood, he was a huge fan of Wasim Akram, and I think that rubbed off on bhai during his younger years. We will all really miss the calming influence he had in all our lives, especially bhai’s, when he used to get stressed.”
The Moradabad-based pacer had complained of soreness in his knee during the third India-England Test match, after which India national team captain Virat Kohli decided to give him some rest ahead of the Australia series. Shami has been training at the National Cricket Academy for the past month, while recuperating from his knee injury. He was supposed to return to Delhi on January 29 to spend time with his father.
Shami’s brother said, “Abbu was a very popular figure back home in Moradabad; he used to take bhai for coaching everyday during his childhood and sit there to watch the matches. However, as he grew older he had to stop.
“This is something he really missed, because amongst all of us, he took the most amount of interest in the development of his career. That is why I said that his father would have had no problem that he left to practise in Bangalore. I’m sure if he was fit, he would force him to take us along.”
Shami was training with India’s T20 squad as per his rehab schedule. Upon receiving this news he immediately rushed to Amroha, where his father’s body was taken.
Shami’s father knew the importance of his presence in a career that went from the tiny lanes of Moradabad, to the glitz and glamour of the India’s national team. However, during this process there was no change in his own behaviour, right till the end. The goal was always the same: to make Shami India’s greatest pacer.
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