“I love responsibility, I love the challenge”: Mohammed Siraj on leading the attack in Jasprit Bumrah’s absence against England

Jasprit Bumrah was the standout performer for India in their defeat in the first Test against England in Leeds. Fans were taken aback when he was excluded from the playing XI for the second Test at Edgbaston due to workload management concerns. However, his absence didn’t affect India’s performance significantly. Mohammed Siraj took charge in Bumrah’s place, picking up 6 wickets and helping to dismiss England for 407, giving India a commanding 180-run lead.

In the press conference after Day 3, Siraj reflected on his changed role.

“I love responsibility, I love the challenge. It feels incredible because I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time. I’ve been bowling well, but the wickets weren’t coming. I’ve only had four-wicket hauls here before, so getting six wickets in this match is really special. Akash Deep is playing his third or fourth match, and the same goes for Prasidh, so my focus was on staying consistent and creating pressure. While I feel like trying different things, I know I need to remain consistent,” the pacer said.

“The pitch was slow, but when you’re entrusted with leading the attack, you avoid overdoing things. I concentrated on bowling in the right areas. My mindset was to keep it tight,” he added.

Mohammed Siraj ended with impressive figures of 6/70, including the crucial wickets of Zak Crawley, Joe Root, and Ben Stokes. He wrapped up his spell by dismissing Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, and Shoaib Bashir.

This marks the first six-wicket haul by a visiting pacer at Edgbaston since 1993 and the third-best by an overseas bowler. Siraj joined a select group of five pacers who took a five-wicket haul against England at Edgbaston.

He is the fifth Indian pacer to achieve this feat in England after Amar Singh, Chetan Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Ishant Sharma.

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