India’s pace spearhead Mohammed Siraj called his six-wicket haul against England in the second Test at Edgbaston “unbelievable,” marking his maiden five-wicket haul in English conditions. The Hyderabad-born fast bowler delivered a spirited performance on Day 3, playing a key role in putting India in a dominant position.
Siraj struck early on the third morning, removing Joe Root and Ben Stokes in the very first over, building on his late Day 2 dismissal of Zak Crawley. He later returned to clean up the lower order, finishing with impressive figures of 6 for 70 in 19.3 overs, helping India secure a 180-run first-innings lead.
Speaking to JioStar after stumps, Siraj revealed that his approach on the slow Edgbaston pitch was to keep things simple and focus on execution. As quoted by The Hindustan Times, he emphasized not overcomplicating things on such wickets.
“It’s unbelievable, because I’ve been waiting for a year to get a five-wicket haul. I was always stuck at 4. The bowling was so good, but I wasn’t getting a five-wicket haul. So, this moment is very special for me.”
”And in England, I didn’t get a fifer. So, these 6 wickets are very special for me. The wicket was very slow. Because, when you get a responsibility and I had a lot of experience. So, my only aim was that I wouldn’t try too much from my end.”
“Consistency Was the Key”– Siraj Reflects on Match Heroics: Consistency Was the Key
Mohammed Siraj also revealed that he took it upon himself to lead the bowling attack in Jasprit Bumrah’s absence, given the inexperience of Akash Deep and Prasidh Krishna. He further stated (as mentioned in the source):
“Akash Deep is playing just his 3rd or 4th Test match. The same is the case with Prasidh Krishna. I have played 38 Tests. My only aim was to deliver and bowl consistent line and lengths. I had almost 600 runs on my board. So, I also wanted to try this. But my only aim was to hold the ball as much as I could. If the pressure builds, it would have been great for us.”
Get the latest cricket news here, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for more such updates.
