CHENNAI: A little into the third session on Day Three, Indian pacers had finally broken the Jamie Smith-Harry Brook partnership. It happened as soon as the second new ball came into play and, England, in quick time, were nine down with Mohammed Siraj taking a fifer — his first since the Cape Town Test in early 2024.
Immediately after he took the wicket of Josh Tongue — his fifth of the innings — Siraj welcomed Shoaib Bashir with a brutal bouncer that hit the England spinner on the helmet. Just as Bashir was going through the concussion protocol, Siraj turned to Akash Deep, his fellow pacer, who had four wickets next to his name and was on the verge of his first Test fifer. "Unko meine ye bhi bhola ki 'char ball bacha hai, mein bahar dalun kya? (I even asked him 'four balls left, should I bowl wide, defensive lines?)," he would ask Akash Deep (as revealed in the video shared by BCCI) so that the Bengal pacer could get his name also on the honours board. Akash Deep would politely decline and Siraj captured his sixth and England's last wicket on the very next delivery. As he led the team off the field, with the ball in his hand, Siraj had recorded his second-best Test figures — 6/70 in 19.3 overs. That conversation and his performance on Friday, in many ways, summed up Siraj the leader and the person.
An extremely skilful bowler who will run in all day for his team, Siraj had faced a fair bit of criticism over the last 12 months when it comes to red-ball cricket. First, the home series loss against New Zealand and then the lack of wickets in Australia meant Siraj was under immense pressure to step up when he arrived in England. Not just because he was not getting wickets, but also the fact that it had increased Jasprit Bumrah's workload. "If you want Bumrah to last longer for you in these five Tests, Siraj is one with a lot of experience right now under his belt. He's played in England too before and it's time that he puts his hands up and says, 'let me take the brunt of the bowling'. Experience is something which is extremely important. You may have all the skills but coupled with experience, you become that much better. And Siraj also having had prior exposure in England, he played those Tests where he bowled exceptionally well. I think if you can take that confidence with the kind of rhythm that he looked in the IPL, to me, he looks to come good in England," former India bowling coach and one of Siraj's long-time mentors, Bharat Arun, had told this daily before the series.
However, questions over his form had only magnified after the loss in Headingley. But the thing about Siraj is that he brings out the best when backed up against the wall. In fact, that is how he rose to the top in the 2020-21 Border Gavaskar Trophy. Barely two Tests old, Siraj led the Indian pace attack in Brisbane, took a fifer and helped them register a historic win. In the years that followed, every time when there was no senior pacer to step up in the XI, Siraj did, at least more often than not. His numbers, with and without Bumrah in the playing XI, highlights an interesting story. In the 23 Tests Siraj has played alongside Bumrah, he has taken 69 wickets at 33.82, including a fifer. Without Bumrah, when Siraj had to lead the pace attack, he has 39 wickets in 15 tests at 25.2 average and three fifers to show.
This is not to say that when Bumrah plays, Siraj under-performs, but there is something about the extra responsibility that seems to bring the best out in him. And that is what India needed from him when they decided to rest Bumrah against popular opinion for the second Test in Edgbaston. Siraj knew what was expected of him and gave it all. First, with the wicket of Zak Crawley on Thursday and with Ben Stokes on Friday. In between the two, he needed a little bit of luck, which had deserted him for a while, to remove Joe Root. Now, Siraj believed. He believed in himself, just like he once famously said, 'I only believe in Jassi bhai, because he is a game changer' after the 2024 T20 World Cup win in Barbados.
On Friday, Siraj was the game-changer for India alongside Akash Deep as he not only just took wickets but also made sure he was not giving away boundary balls. Despite the 303-run stand between Smith and Brook, Siraj continued to operate at 3.58 runs per over — the lowest economy among all Indian bowlers — on one of the flattest pitches. No other Indian bowler went below 4 RPO. "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 later in a video shared by the BCCI. Even Akash Deep credited Siraj for the early wickets he got with the new ball. "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," he said in the same video.
Just before the video began, left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh made an appearance, held Siraj and talked into the microphone. "Bhai.. dialogue change.. Today, a small change in the plan... 'I only believe in myself and Jassi bhai'," Arsheep said while Siraj, visibly shy, grinned. Come the fourth innings, Siraj and India will remember that. For they believe in Siraj and he will be determined to replicate a similar performance.
