Shortly after the end of the England innings and before the Indians came out to bat again, the Barmy Army trumpeter in the Rajkot stands was playing the tune of the famous John Denver number ‘Annie’s Song’. A few English fans sang ‘You fill up my senses’ in unison.
No marks for guessing who had ‘filled up the senses’ of the India fans at the stadium. When the team needed someone to deliver in the absence of Ravichandran Ashwin on the third day of the third Test, Mohammed Siraj stepped up. Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav had struck early and kept the run flow in check. After them, India had to sustain the good work.
Having sent back Ollie Pope at a vital time the previous evening, Siraj not only kept the batters under a leash. He dealt timely blows in telling fashion to help India gain a lead of 126, along with the upper hand in this crucial match. Both eventualities had looked unlikely when England started at 207/2 from a ridiculous 35 overs.
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Bumrah and Kuldeep put the brakes on scoring, Joe Root perished possibly to the most forgettable shot in the history of India-England Tests, Ben Duckett and Ben Stokes also succumbed to rash strokes. But the job was still not done. Had England reached 400 or thereabouts, which was not impossible at 260/5 given the way India usually let the tail wag, it would have looked a lot different from what it did at stumps.
Figures of 21.1-2-84-4 are nowhere near the best that Siraj has produced in 25 Tests so far (including this one). But in terms of effectiveness, timing and value in the context of the five-match series tied at 1-1, this should rank among his better ones. No Ashwin, and Bumrah having taken just one wicket — someone had to do the job of running through the batting.
The fast bowler, rested for the second Test after going wicketless in the first, didn’t do anything spectacular. He stuck to one side of the wicket. This was outside off initially, before he resorted to short-pitched stuff with a packed leg-side field. This was instrumental in India bringing down England’s scoring rate of nearly six per over on Day 2 to 3.11 on Day 3.
The tail has often been India’s Achilles heel. Even in the first Test, England’s lower-order had added decisive runs, despite the home team having in its ranks wicket-takers like Bumrah and Ashwin. That possibility couldn’t have been ruled out. Ben Foakes, Rehan Ahmed and Tom Hartley were yet to get out. All three had contributed crucial runs in the first match.
Once Hartley committed hara-kiri, Siraj produced two searing yorkers to hasten the end of the innings. He was fast, straight and nearly unplayable with those deliveries. Accustomed to losing tail-enders to yorkers from opposition bowlers, it must have been heartening for Rohit Sharma to see one of his own pay it back in the same coin.
Good bowling units are those which hunt in packs. There may or may not be eye-catching hauls, headline-grabbing figures or career-changing returns. The hallmark of a strong bowling bunch is the ability to get the job done, irrespective of who is doing it. Siraj produced one such burst when India needed it the most.
With due respect to the contribution of the other bowlers and Yashasvi Jaiswal’s sparkling century, Siraj’s perseverance and zeal to deliver on a pitch still good for batting was perhaps the most valuable performance of the day for his team.
Also Read: Siraj, Jaiswal shine bright, as India take control of Rajkot Test