Mohammed Siraj 'wanted to instil fear'; heated exchange backfires as Harry Brook makes him suffer for exchanging words
Mohammed Siraj was expected to shoulder Jasprit Bumrah's responsibility in the absence of Mohammed Shami, but the India pacer, in just his first outing on the tour of England, gave his bowling partner more headaches than relief. Siraj became India's fourth centurion of the Headingley Test match, conceding 2/122, allowing England to pummel 466 in their first innings. But more than the wayward bowling, it was Siraj's attitude and reluctance to learn from his mistakes that infuriated more. It's no secret that Siraj loves to be aggressive, rile the opposition batter up. When it comes off, he looks like a million dollars, but when it doesn't, he reiterates the thin line that exists between looking sexy and looking stupid. India's Mohammed Siraj, right, and England's Harry Brook, left, exchange words on Day 3 of first Test(AFP)
Also Read: India vs England, 1st Test Day 3 Updates
Unfortunately, on Day 3 of the first Test at Headingley, it was the latter. Not only did Siraj bleed runs, but also looked like he was running out of ideas. Perhaps it was the same frustration that made him have a go at Harry Brook. In the 84th over, a ball from Siraj struck Brook on his pads. Siraj stood there looking at Brook before the batter finally retaliated with something. And that was all it took. Siraj muttered a few words back, and after a few back-and-forth words exchanged, Brook finally shushed Siraj away. That was all the England batter needed to get charged up, as after that incident, Brook went on to unleash a maddening carnage on the Indian bowlers.
Also Read: Jasprit Bumrah points towards heaven after picking fifer despite India stars failing him; equals Kapil Dev's record
Dropped by Yashasvi Jaiswal an over ago, Brook went 6, 4, 4 off Siraj's next to race into the 90s. He looked set for a hundred, but after getting three reprieves, Brook hooked a ball from Prasidh Krishna right down Shardul Thakur's throat at fine leg to get out on 99. Siraj and Jaiswal breathed a sigh of relief, but that doesn't mask the overall picture – Siraj's aggression that needs to be controlled. Former India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik, who was on commentary, aptly summed up what's wrong with Siraj's aggression and why it backfires more often than it succeeds. Dinesh Karthik had a word with Mohammed Siraj during IPL 2025
"Interesting to see Siraj get a bit aggressive. Just have a look at him. Hits the elbow. Siraj had something to say. He likes to get aggressive. He was playing against RCB as well. He got aggressive. And then in one game, he came up against Phil Salt. The game was in Delhi. RCB were chasing and he thought it was the best way to get himself pumped it," Karthik said.
"Siraj gave a few words back to Phil Salt and then Salt took off after that. After the match got over, I asked Siraj 'Why did you have to go after him? You were bowling so nicely. He said 'No, I just wanted to instil some fear'. I said but that's what he likes. He immediately turned and said 'You should have told me after before the game started. Not after I got hit'".
Siraj's form with the ball has long been a concern for India. He was dropped from India's Champions Trophy squad, but after showing some spark in the IPL for Gujarat Titans, the pacer was picked in India's 18-member squad. Long way ahead, but Siraj should not mind fine-tuning a few things to get back to being a potent threat with the ball.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
13 minutes ago
- The Hindu
ENG vs IND 1st Test: I try to forget quickly, says Bumrah on Indian dropped catches
In a parallel world, Jasprit Bumrah could have had more than the five wickets he ended up with in England's first innings here, and that too in double quick time. But a disastrous fielding display by his teammates – they dropped three catches off his bowling – and some rotten luck – he dismissed Harry Brook off a no-ball when on nought – ensured India was on the field for far longer than desired. But Bumrah was empathetic towards his fielders. 'You have to move forward,' he said on Sunday. 'I try to quickly forget. They [fielders] are also new [to England] and sometimes the ball is tough to sight. I don't want to be angry and kicking and putting more pressure.' ALSO READ | Bumrah fifer and Rahul's steady 47 helps India take 96-run lead at end of Day 3 Bumrah also stated that the wicket was still good to bat. 'There is a little bit of two-pace and the new ball might swing. But no demons. It's a fast scoring ground. So the more runs we get, the better.' By his own admission, the 31-year-old is not looking to play more than three Tests this series for better management of his workload. But the potential limited participation doesn't affect his thinking and preparation, he said. 'You don't look at what is going to happen. At this moment, I am trying to assess the wicket, and the batter. I am not thinking about how many games I am going to play.' The constant chatter about his career ending because of injuries also doesn't bother him. 'It was once said that I can't play cricket at all. Then it became six months, eight months. But it's been more than 10 years now in internationals and 12 to 13 years of IPL. Still people are saying 'I will go'. People can keep saying, but I am going nowhere. I will keep playing until god allows me to and try taking Indian cricket forward.'
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
RP Singh is president, Abhijit Sarkar Sr VP of UP Hockey
1 2 3 Lucknow:Former Indian captain RP Singh has been unanimously elected president of UP Hockey in the elections held during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the association at the KD Singh 'Babu' Stadium on Sunday. Abhijit Sarkar has been named senior vice-president, while Rajnish Mishra and Nisha Mishra were elected secretary and treasurer, respectively. Animesh Saxena (RSO) acted as an observer, with HI vice-president Nitin Kohli and general secretary of the Uttar Pradesh Olympic Association Anandeshwar Pandey in attendance. Nitesh bags three golds Nitesh Kumar bagged three gold medals at the Asian Para Badminton Championship in Thailand, as the Indian contingent claimed a rich haul of 27 medals, including four gold, 10 silver, and 13 bronze. Nitesh won the men's singles gold in the SL3 category before clinching the yellow metal in mixed doubles and men's doubles, partnering with T. Murgesan and Sukant Kadam, respectively. Manisha Ramadas claimed the women's singles title in the SU5 category, while Palak Kohli and Mandeep Kaur settled for silver in the women's singles SL4 and SL3 categories, respectively.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Cricket: England cancel out India's first innings lead as visitors endure below par day in the field
LEEDS: K L Rahul drove his way to a sublime 47 after England negated India's advantage by totalling 465 in their first innings as the visitors had another ordinary day in the field on day three of the first Test here on Sunday. India dropped as many as five catches and barring Jasprit Bumrah , the effort from the pacers left a lot to be desired, allowing England to even out the game after the Shubman Gill-led side posted 471 in its first essay. At stumps, India reached 90 for two with Rahul (47 batting off 75) and Shubman Gill (6 batting off 10). Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Chapters Chapters Descriptions descriptions off , selected Captions captions settings , opens captions settings dialog captions off , selected Audio Track default , selected Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Chuck Norris Says Stay Away From These Foods After 60 Roundhouse Provisions Learn More Undo Brydon Carse had Yashavi Jaiswal (4 off 11) caught behind with a ball that seamed away while Ben Stokes got rid of debutant Sai Sudharsan (30 off 48) for the second time in the game, the southpaw's flick falling into the hands of Zak Crawley at mid-wicket. Rahul was a delight to watch as majority of his seven fours came via the cover and square drive off the fast bowlers. He did not look any discomfort whatsoever despite the ball doing a bit in overcast conditions. Stumps were drawn when rain arrived at Headingley with India leading by 96 runs. Live Events In an extended afternoon session, Harry Brook ran out of luck on 99 before Jasprit Bumrah completed a well deserved five-wicket haul to ensure a slender six-run first innings lead for India. Before Bumrah castled Josh Tongue to end England innings, Chris Woakes (38 off 55) punished a predictable Indian pace attack to take his team close to India's 471. Hosts continued to find the boundaries at will as they collected 138 runs in 23.4 overs in the afternoon session with the loss of five wickets. Prasidh Krishna removed Jamie Smith (40 off 52) and Brook (99 off 112) with the short ball but leaked too many runs at the same time with his one dimensional tactic, conceding 128 runs in 20 overs. Bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur was under bowled again, raising questions over his selection. Bumrah, who has by far been the best Indian bowler on display, picked up his 14th fifer in the longest format ending with figures of 5/83 in 24.4 overs. India's fielding have been their weakest link so far in the game and having been give two lives, Brook was dropped again, on 82, by Jaiswal off Bumrah. The explosive England batter however could not use those chances to score a famous hundred and was dismissed on 99 in the 88th over. India had taken the new ball after 80 overs but were not able to make good use of it. Captain Shubman Gill made questionable calls like introducing Ravindra Jadeja towards the end of the session and bringing back Bumrah for a late burst. In the opening session, Brook went on the offensive against an inconsistent Indian pace attack, taking England to 327 for five at lunch. Resuming at an overnight 209 for three, Brook ensured that England scored at a brisk pace, totalling 118 runs in 28 overs. The visitors got two welcome wickets of overnight centurion Ollie Pope (106 off 137) and England captain Ben Stokes (20 off 52). Like day two, the other Indian pacers could not match the accuracy of Bumrah. Brook, dismissed off a Bumrah no ball at the stroke of stumps on day two, was dropped by wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant on 46 shortly before lunch. Jadeja, who was able to extract sharp turn from the rough, got one to turn away sharply but Pant could not hold on to the rising ball. In the same over, Brook completed his 12th Test fifty, adding to the frustration of the Indians who have been sloppy with their catching thus far in the game. Led by captain Shubman Gill, the Indians were also very vocal about their issues with a worn out Dukes ball throughout the session. The umpires relented before the 75th over while the new ball will be due after 80 overs. The session belonged to the highly rated Brook who produced a display of audacious strokeplay from the get go. Krishna offered two loose balls in the first over of the day and Brook duly put them for a four through point and six off over mid-wicket. Brook's tactics against the pacers, including Bumrah, stood out as he charged down to them for aerial drives over extra cover. Krishna, in his following over, was lucky to get Pope out as the England number three edged a short and wide ball to the keeper.
