Indian pacer Mohammed Shami on Monday said that his team is disappointed with the kind of pitches they have been given in the last two Tests as they wanted tracks that would help them prepare for the tour of South Africa.
"As far as the pitches are concerned, we haven't got the sort of pitches that would have helped us prepare for the tour of South Africa. But on these pitches we have been able to test ourselves by bowling long spells and assess our fitness. As a unit also, we have produced while being in the field for more than 100 overs," the pacer bluntly stated.
Shami also talked about the bigger role that Indian pacers have been playing in their team's success.
"As fast bowlers, we don't get to bowl that much in India. But in the last 1-1/2 years, we have been bowling a lot more in matches and that gives us an opportunity to show our skills. The more you bowl, the better you get. So that is good," the Bengal pacer said.
With the Lankan bowlers complaining of bad health due to air pollution, Shami was questioned about his own experience and he had this to say: "I was anyway a bit sick and yes there is pollution. But it is not as bad as was being made out. Maybe for us it wasn't a big issue because we are used to it."
Shami had taken a wicket of the very first ball of the innings when he dismissed opener Dimuth Karunaratne.
He took another wicket on Day 3 when he got Suranga Lakmal out. On both occassions, the victim was caught behind by wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha.
Shami bowled couple of good spells during the day in which he got the ball to move a little as well but didn't think it was due to reverse swing.
"I didn't see any reverse swing today but the ball was holding up a bit. The pace at which we are bowling, if there was reverse swing, we would have finished off the Lankan innings today itself," the 27-year old asserted.
With two days remaining in the game, draw is a big possibility but Shami is looking for a victory. "We are hopeful of winning this Test. We are always looking for a result and keep up our efforts till the very end. We'll see how the conditions change and then react to it," the pacer concluded by saying.