Top 3 Bowling Spells By Mohammed Siraj In Test Cricket
Mohammed Siraj in Cape Town in January 2024 (AP)
Mohammed Siraj and his journey from humble beginnings to the pinnacle of India’s pace arsenal within a fleeting span of time is akin to a meteoric ascent in the cricketing cosmos. Ever since he made his Test debut back in December 2020, his resilience and skill has made him one of the linchpins of India’s success abroad.
His innate ability to swing, seam, and deliver with unerring accuracy has transformed him into a national treasure. Notably, within a mere month of his Test induction against Australia in their own den, Siraj showcased his mettle to solidify his role as a premier force in India’s pace contingent.
From England’s challenging conditions to the unforgiving arenas of Australia and the West Indies, Siraj’s contributions were instrumental in scripting a number of historic Indian victories. Moreover, he has proven himself to be a crafty pace exponent on spin-friendly Indian surfaces too, by forming a formidable pace combo with Jasprit Bumrah.
Celebrating Mohammed Siraj’s career, here at OneCricket, we take a look back at three of his best bowling spells in Test cricket since his debut up until the New Year’s match of January 2024 in Cape Town.
3 Top Bowling Spells By Mohammed Siraj in Tests:
1. 4-32 vs England, Lord’s, 2021
Mohammed Siraj at Lord's in August 2021 (x.com)
Only five-Test old at the time, Mohammed Siraj travelled to England as one of India’s elite pacers for a five-match challenge in August 2021. Turning up for his country at Lord’s in the second Test of the series, the cricketer picked up four Englishmen in their high-scoring first innings, where the hosts ended up securing a handy 27-run lead.
After Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah’s Day 5 defiance set up an imposing target of 272 for Joe Root and co., Siraj delivered the knockout punch to the hosts by claiming four of the final five wickets on offer, all during the final session of their five-day bout.
The prodigious pace talent curtailed Jos Buttler’s brewing partnership with Moeen Ali by removing the latter with a peach. Off the very next delivery, the cricketer trapped Sam Curran for a first-ball duck with a similar line to have England on the mat at 90-7.
Buttler defied India’s attack for another hour until he and number 11 James Anderson were both trapped by Siraj within the final 30 minutes of the match to seal an improbable 151-run win for Team India.
2. 5-73 vs Australia, GABBA, 2021
Mohammed Siraj celebrating an Australian wicket at the GABBA (x.com)
Having made his Test debut at the MCG in December 2020, Mohammed Siraj found himself leading the Indian pace attack the following month after a number of senior Indian bowlers had slumped to untimely injuries.
The cricketer graced his newfound responsibility with utmost panache, especially during the second Australian innings after hosts openers David Warner and Marcus Harris had formed a belligerent 89-run partnership at the top.
Siraj trapped Marnus Labuschagne and Matthew Wade in succession to tilt the game back in India’s favor. Moreover, the cricketer also surprised charismatic Australian batsman Steve Smith with a scorcher against the run of play to have hosts crumble further at 196-5.
The young speedster further dismissed Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood to polish off the Australian tail by 294, thus restricting the hosts’ lead to 327 runs.
Siraj concluded his second innings workload with astonishing figures of 5-73 from his 19.5 overs, thus registering his maiden five-wicket haul and career-best Test performance at the time.
His spell, coupled with Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant’s run-chase masterclass on the final day set up an emphatic series victory for an injury-ravaged Indian team, as they breached Australia’s 32-year-old GABBA fortress to script history.
3. 6-15 vs South Africa, Cape Town, 2024
Mohammed Siraj in Cape Town in January 2024 (x.com)
Mohammed Siraj leveraged the seam-friendly conditions of Cape Town’s Newlands Cricket Ground to its fullest, a week after Team India crumbled to an innings defeat during their 2023-24 two-Test tour of South Africa.
Facing the Proteas in the series-deciding second Test match in January 2024, Siraj got the new-ball swinging at the top alongside pace mates Jasprit Bumrah and Mukesh Kumar to demolish the hosts with his career-best figures.
The 29-year-old fast bowler dismissed both South African openers, Aiden Markram and Dean Elgar, as well as middle-order batters Tony de Zorzi, David Bedingham and Kyle Verreynne all with the new-ball as his opening gambit had them gasping for breath at 45-7 at one stage.
It took him just nine overs to claim six wickets in the innings, at the expense of just 15 runs as the speedster tallied his second Test six-fer and his career-best figures in the format. Siraj’s spell also demolished the entire South African line-up for just 55 inside the opening session of the day to give India an early advantage in their much-important game.
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