Auckland: India's pace spearhead Mohammed Shami feels a certain degree of comfort playing under Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the Indian captain has never been "demanding" and his backing has made the Bengal seamer's transformation from domestic to international cricket pretty smooth.
Shami is India's highest wicket-taker in the tournament with 12 victims in five matches.
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Asked about Dhoni's contribution in his two-year international career, Shami said: "I like the way he (Dhoni) handles the team and handles me as a bowler as I have made my debut under him across all formats. I am always free and I have never been tensed when he has captained the side.
"He is not someone, who demands certain things from me. He is someone who has always told me about my mistakes and asked me not to repeat them in the future. He never gets angry. He will tell you things very calmly and handles the situation well which helps a bowler," the normally reticent Shami couldn't stop raving about his captain at the pre-match media conference, here on Friday.
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For Shami, it's paramount as a bowler that he gets proper backing from the captain and Dhoni has exactly done that. In fact, he went a step ahead and said that he felt more comfortable in the Indian dressing room than the domestic team (Bengal) that he played.
"The support and backing of your captain despite making mistakes is very important and Dhoni does that. It has been a plus point for me that I have played and made my debut under him," he said.
"When I was playing domestic cricket (for Bengal), I used to think about what I would talk to the seniors when I reach the international level. When I came to the international level, I felt a lot more comfortable than the domestic level. This is the confidence that has helped me thus far and I will try to take forward this self confidence ahead," he added.
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Asked how the Indian bowling unit has devised their plans which has enabled them to dismiss all the five oppositions so far, Shami said, "It depends what kind of a situation you are in and what plans are at place.
"You look to work on those plans and bowl accordingly. As a bowler, you have your own plan and so does the captain and you need to have both of them in mind while bowling. We follow those plans. If 'Plan A' is not working then we switch to Plan B."
