Dale Steyn had predicted a fifer from Mohammed Siraj at the Oval. Bowling coach Morne Morkel is glad he’s getting all the appreciation for bending his back and bowling relentlessly. And all of India will tune in on Day 5 looking to him, despite the near impossible task of denying England 35 runs for a win.
What’s more, English cricket watchers love watching him play, and the refrain goes that every team would want to go do battle with him on their side.
Even as Siraj crossed 200 international wickets across formats at London (40 matches , 114 in Tests), praise flew from various quarters. The man himself? He waved away all concerns of breaking down even as other pacers from both sides ended up knackered if not broken.
It might all be over very soon. But then there’s Siraj standing there like Heimdall stopping the Bifrost.
“I love to play for the country. I don’t think of if I broke down or anything. I think of the match In my mind I keep simple plan. I give it everything. And rest will follow,” Siraj told Sky cricket after Day 4. “Since childhood, why did you play…motivation is to play for India. I don’t fixate on result. Just give 100 percent in the body. When you relax after a tough day, you ask yourself if the answer is yes you have 100 percent, then I sleep well. Zyada nai sochta result kya aaega, kya nahi,” he continued.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Michael Atherton compared Siraj to Yorkshire and England legend,the warhorse,big grinned Darren Gough, a fiery fast bowler from his own playing days. He said that Siraj can lift the whole team with his enthusiasm, which makes 35 runs not a mere formality.
“Absolutely, and the type of cricketer I think that just makes other people rise up as well. We had one way back in my time, Darren Gough, would just make people play better just because of the way they carried on in the middle and in the dressing room actually,” Atherton told Sky. “When the going gets tough there are some characters that just grow a bit taller. He is one and everybody else will look at him,” Atherton said.
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Elaborating, he added, “He’s a bit of leader in the field. He’s not captain obviously. Not wearing armband. But he’s the guy they look to when it gets tough. So he makes others play better in those moments.”
Siraj surpassed Bhuvneshwar Kumar to now trail only Jasprit Bumrah for most wickets (24) against England in England. His spell on day 4 was a scorching one, bowling eight overs, giving away 33 runs, and getting a crucial wicket of Ollie Pope to end the first session with figures of 2/44 in 12 overs, though he set up the board for Prasidh to snare wickets.
The hard working bowler is the leading wicket-taker with 20 wickets at an average of 34.30 in nine innings, with best figures of 6/70. He went past Bhuvneshwar’s 19-wickets in 2014 at an average of 26.63 and best figures of 6/82.
Guardian lavished praise on him. ‘Mohammed Siraj has had a phenomenal series. No amount of praise could be too much. Nobody has bowled as many overs, taken as many wickets, given so much of themselves. Only slips and wicketkeepers have taken more catches. It was Siraj who Bashir dismissed to end the Lord’s Test, after he had faced 30 deliveries for four gutsy, stubborn, determined runs. Even his body language, his wonderful ability to physically express the situation in which he finds himself, is unrivalled. He has been magnetic, magnificent, an outsider who is simply unprepared to be anything but integral. And just as it seemed to have swung closed it was Siraj who thrust open the door for England to win the series.’
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Joe Root too said he enjoyed playing against him. “He’s a character. He’s a warrior. A real warrior. He’s someone you want on your team. He’s that kind of character. He gives everything for India and it’s credit to him for the way he approaches cricket. He’s got this fake angriness about him sometimes. Which I can see straight through . You can tell he’s actually a really nice lad. But he tries incredibly hard. He’s a very skillful player and the reason why he’s got the wickets because one, his work eic. And two, his skill level. I enjoy playing against him. He’s always got a big smile on his face. And he’ll give everything for his team. You can’t want anything more than that as a fan watching and a great example to any young player starting out.”
Ravi Shastri, on Sky post end of days plays, said, “He’s a trier. He’ll give his everything. You bring him on in third spell, he’ll bowl with same kind of energy. What he’s developed now, when he pitches the ball is outswing. That will make him doubly dangerous. Because his top delivery will be a handful on this surface anyway.”
On his personality, the bombastic Shastri had said, “Even when he’s having a go, he will do it with a smile. So you don’t know where he’s coming from. He will be in your face. He’s not overawed by anyone in opposition. He’ll have a crack at anyone batting. With a bit of luck that 18 could have been 23, 24 in this series. The same in Australia. Numbers don’t do justice.”
