Mohammed Siraj produced a dream spell on the final day of the 5th Test against England at The Oval, powering India to victory with a five-wicket haul. Siraj took the wickets of Jamie Smith, Jamie Overton and Gus Atkinson, handing India their narrowest-ever win in Test cricket. He finished as the top wicket-taker of the five-match series, and the only one to take more than 20 scalps. When asked by a reporter during the press conference as to how he had recovered from a sub-par performance during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024/25, Siraj was quick to point out that he took 20 wickets Down Under as well.
“I took 20 wickets in BGT, sir. When Jassi bhai (Jasprit Bumrah) was bowling well, my only job was to bowl in partnership as much as possible,” Siraj stated.
Siraj’s tally of 23 wickets in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy has meant that he has joined a list featuring only Kapil Dev and Jasprit Bumrah beforehand, of Indian pacers to take more than 20 wickets in multiple series.
“I didn’t want to try too much because if I would try hard, I could leak runs, and the pressure would build-up as well,” Siraj further said.
While Jasprit Bumrah enjoyed arguably the greatest-ever series by an Indian bowler during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, picking up 32 wickets, Siraj was a tireless partner in the attack. Siraj bowled the most number of overs out of any bowler in the series.
Meanwhile, legendary Indian batter Virat Kohli hailed Team India for their six-run win against England in a thriller at The Oval, which levelled the series 2-2.
He gave a special shoutout to pacer Mohammed Siraj, saying he puts everything on the line for the team.
Siraj sealed his status as one of India’s premier bowlers in overseas conditions, bowling an inspirational spell in tandem with Prasidh Krishna, which saw England collapse from 317/4 to 367 all out.
“Great win by team india. Resilience and determination from Siraj and Prasidh has given us this phenomenal victory. Special mention to Siraj who will put everything on the line for the team. Extremely happy for him,” Virat said in a post on X.
With ANI inputs
