Mohammed Siraj, the red-ball bowler, is gradually transcending to legendary levels. On the first morning of the first Test against the West Indies, the Indian pacer attained another milestone.
He bowled a brilliant spell, rudely giving a shock to the top order of the visitors. Siraj picked up three wickets before lunch and was the architect of a disastrous start for the West Indies. With the wicket of Brandon King, Siraj’s tally of wickets for the 2025 calendar year reached 30, which is the highest this year amongst the WTC teams.
Siraj went past Australia’s Mitchell Starc, whose wicket count for the year stands at 29. The other two names in the top four are Nathan Lyon at 24 and Shamar Joseph at 22. The quartet has dominated the bowling narrative this year as far as Test cricket is concerned.
Siraj has shown that he is adept at picking up wickets at different stages and crucial moments. He has taken top-order wickets with the new ball, but he has also prized out set players once the shine wore off the cherry. This duality has kept India on the front foot as a Test team in different conditions.
Mohammad Siraj taking responsibilities
Earlier this year, Mohammed Siraj’s stock rose when he took up the responsibilities of being the leader of the pack when Jasprit Bumrah was handled carefully because of workload management during the England tour. The best part of Siraj’s performance was when he picked up the wickets. He walked into the series under pressure, his form was wobbly, and India needed a constant and consistent presence in the attack with Bumrah’s workload in focus.
{{/usCountry}}Earlier this year, Mohammed Siraj’s stock rose when he took up the responsibilities of being the leader of the pack when Jasprit Bumrah was handled carefully because of workload management during the England tour. The best part of Siraj’s performance was when he picked up the wickets. He walked into the series under pressure, his form was wobbly, and India needed a constant and consistent presence in the attack with Bumrah’s workload in focus.
{{/usCountry}}He answered in style with game-changing spells across the series. In different games, he came up sometimes with new-ball wickets that opened up the top-order, sometimes with spells that dismissed set batters bringing his team back in the game, and in the fifth Test, that all-important last spell that won India the match, drawing level in the series.
Even in the ongoing Test match, Siraj looked more settled in the format than Bumrah. While Bumrah had to adjust his line and length from the T20s that he has played recently, Siraj looked on the money from the first ball. It was his ability to nick the WI top-order that helped India dominate the first session and take control of the game pretty early.