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Nasser Hussain grills ICC after Mohammed Siraj punished for 'fired up' celebration: 'You don't need 22 robots'
Mohammed Siraj faced a penalty following his aggressive celebration after dismissing Ben Duckett during the Lord's Test.
The Lord's Test between India and England saw tempers rise between both teams on the pitch. The Indian camp was particularly rattled by England's time-wasting tactics during the final minutes of Day 3. The heated exchange between Indian captain Shubman Gill and Zak Crawley sparked aggressive undertones for the remainder of the Test, with Ben Stokes, too, returning the favour when India batted the next day.
Despite the foul language being recorded on stump mic and Gill even making an obscene gesture, it was Mohammed Siraj who came under the scanner and was fined by the ICC following the Test. Siraj's celebrations after dismissing Ben Duckett in the second innings were seen as “provocative,” with ICC further stating that they could've incited an “aggressive reaction from a batter.”
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As Siraj dismissed Duckett, both players had a minor shoulder clash, which drew outcry from the English fans. However, former England captain Nasser Hussain believes that the celebration didn't warrant an ICC punishment; he also refused to accept that the shoulder barge was intentional.
"One of the highlights of the Test match, the way India went at Crawley. They (England openers) started 90 seconds later than they should have! They were very street-smart in the way they slowly walked down the stairs, pretending to get lost in the long room. India rightly went at them, and that obviously fired everyone up.
“Then, Siraj was fired up. I think he's a better cricketer when he's fired up. You'd love to have Siraj on the side. I didn't think he should've been fined. He went close to the line, he was right in Duckett's face, he didn't barge (at) Duckett. If anything, Duckett went in that direction to get off the pitch. It wasn't a shoulder barge. I think it's a game of emotions, and you don't need 22 robots. I love the tension,” Hussain told Sky Sports Cricket.
On the final day's play, Siraj was at the receiving end of a heartbreaking dismissal; despite defending the final ball of the delivery with soft hands, the ball turned sharply onto the stumps following the bounce, resulting in India facing a narrow 22-run loss at Lord's.
Next Test from July 23
Both Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah are expected to feature when India return to action in the fourth Test of the series in Manchester. With the side trailing the series 2-1, the next Test becomes a must-win for India to ensure the hopes for a series win stay alive.
