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'Has taken a big step forward': NZ great believes Siraj may be lagging behind fellow India pacer for T20 World Cup spot
Mohammed Siraj could be behind the senior India pacer who has recently made a comeback in limited overs cricket.
Mohammed Siraj has been going from strength to strength since making his Test debut in India's extraordinary 2020/21 series win in Australia. However, the fast bowler had a rather up and down showing in the recently concluded tour of England.
While Siraj took four wickets in the first innings of the postponed fifth Test against England, he ended up conceding 98 runs for no wickets in the second in just 15 overs as India lost the match by seven wickets. He then didn't play in the T20I series and was picked only once for the ODI series, both of which India won 2-1.
Mohammed Shami, meanwhile, made a roaring return to white ball cricket in the ODIs. While he took just four wickets, he maintained an economy of 4.87 accross the three matches with his bowling partner Jasprit Bumrah commenting that he would deserved to take far more wickets considering how he is going about his business. Former New Zealand batter Scott Styris believes that Shami may have just jumped ahead of Siraj in the pecking order for a spot in the T20 World Cup later this year.
"It is all about balance and head-to-head matchups. For me he was up against Mohammad Shami as a direct comparison, quick through the air, skiddy, not that tall necessarily, doesn't get a lot of bounce, he will do you through pace and maybe depending on where the game is being played, a little bit of reverse," Styris said on Sports18.
"I think Shami has taken a big step forward. Therefore, Siraj is behind the eight ball if you like. Maybe looking for a backup role as well. He had a really disappointing Indian T20 league for a player I had a lot higher expectations from, and that's why Shami is in the queue in front of him," he said.
Styris also said that the re-emergence of Hardik Pandya as an all-rounder condemns Shardul Thakur to fight for a backup spot if he is still being seen as a bowling all-rounder and could struggled to get into the team purely on his bowling skills.
“That's the one thing he has to his advantage is that he bats,” said Styris about Thakur. "The downside is the emergence of Hardik Pandya as a genuine all-rounder. Do you need two of those style of players because Shardul Thakur isn't as good as Hardik Pandya, I don't believe as an all-rounder.
“So maybe he is fighting for a backup spot rather than one of the players to play as a frontline. We have seen him play many match-winning innings for India, usually in the longer versions of the game but he does have that ability to hit boundaries, closing out innings or putting the final touches, the cherry on the top if you like,” he said.
