Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep duly compensated for Jasprit Bumrah’s absence in the second India vs England Test at Edgbaston as the two pacers combined to skittle out England for 407 runs on Friday. Siraj and Akash Deep took all the 10 wickets between them with the former taking 6 while the latter snapped up 4 as they helped India maintain a healthy lead.
“Akash Deep is like a horse. He was waiting for opportunity and when the opportunity arrived he has shown how hungry he was. To be honest I enjoyed a lot bowling with him. I love when given responsibility. My only goal was not to give runs from my end. I tried to bowl with control as much as possible and keep the batsmen under pressure,” Siraj said in an interaction with BCCI.TV.
Bengal pacer Akash Deep also lauded Siraj, saying how much he loved sharing the new ball partnership with the Hyderabad speedster.
Birmingham Besties, ft. Mohammed Siraj 🤜 🤛 Akash Deep#TeamIndia | #ENGvIND | @mdsirajofficial
— BCCI (@BCCI) July 5, 2025
“With the first new ball I got two wickets but Mian (Siraj) played a big role. He kept the pressure from one end. Very important role (Siraj played), we bowled in partnership with the new ball. Enjoyed a lot. The way we made a comeback with the second new ball was special. Five wickets will come and go but I never have these things in mind,” he said.
At close on day 3, India were 64 for 1 in the second innings — an overall lead of 244 runs — with KL Rahul (28 batting) and Karun Nair (7 batting) at the crease. Yashasvi Jaiswal was the only batsman to get out on 28 runs.
Siraj (6/70) struck vital blows in the morning session, dismissing Joe Root (22) and Ben Stokes (0), while Akash Deep (4/88) broke a 303-run partnership between Brook (158) and Smith (184 not out) by getting rid of the former in the post-tea session.
Akash then sent back Chris Woakes for 5 runs to reduce England 395/7, before Siraj wiped out the tail, dismissing Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue and Shoaib Bashir for ducks.
(With agency inputs)
