“After 2015, I only have one meal a day. I only have dinner; no breakfast, no lunch. It is very difficult to do such a thing but once you get used to it then it becomes very easy,” said Shami in an interaction on Star Sports.
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Shami kicked off his ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 campaign on a high, picking five wickets in the team’s opening fixture against Bangladesh in Dubai. He also became the fastest Indian bowler to take 200 ODI scalps.
Shami had been away from international cricket for 14 months owing to an ankle knock that he suffered during the 2023 ODI World Cup final against Australia. He was the tournament’s highest wicket-taker with 24 dismissals, though he did not begin the even in the side’s first-choice playing XI.
The injury needed a surgery and his further recovery was postponed due to a swelling on his left knee. Shami had ended up gaining significant weight during his recovery phase and lost around nine kilograms to get back into shape.
“I have lost nine kgs (during rehabilitation). The most difficult thing is you have to challenge yourself. When you are in this condition… when I was at the NCA, it was a very difficult phase,” he said,
“My weight was touching 90kgs. The best thing about me is that I do not crave for delicacies. I stay away from sweets. I stay away from a lot of things, things that generally one shouldn’t eat. So, I stay away from them,” Shami added.
Shami has 55 wickets to his name across three ODI World Cups, and has now become only the eighth Indian to reach the milestone of 200 dismissals in ODIs. Still, he manages to make way for his favourite biryani once in a while in his diet.
“And, as far as the biryani is concerned, so sometimes it’s okay.” Shami signed off.
First Published: Feb 22, 2025 2:59 PM IST
