Mohammed Siraj set a prime example by the effort (185.3 overs) he put in ATT 2025

Mohammed Siraj’s 185.3-over marathon in Anderson Tendulkar Trophy 2025: How Siraj stacks up against contemporary bowlers.

Believe! This was the magical word that helped Mohammed Siraj pull a miracle on the last day of the fifth Test against England at the Oval. India were defending just 35 runs and had to take four wickets to win the Test and draw the series 2-2. Siraj took three of the last four wickets to take India home by just 6 runs. 

“… I always believe in my bowling that I can take a wicket in any situation. I don’t mind whether I am bowling the first spell or eighth. I just need to give 100%,” Siraj said after the game. 

But it was the morning of the match that set the tone for Siraj to have belief in himself that he can win it for India. He woke up earlier than usual, pulled off an image of football legend Cristiano Ronaldo with ‘BELIEVE’ written on it, and made it his phone’s wallpaper. This little manifestation helped Siraj beat all odds to win a memorable game for India.

Mohammed Siraj, India’s warhorse 
However, it won’t be justice for the warhorse Siraj if he is just remembered for his last day heroics at the Oval. In fact, Siraj showed great work ethics throughout the tournament. He was the only pacer from either side to bowl in every innings of the five Tests, bowled the most overs (185.3) and took the most wickets (23). And on the 25^th day of the Test series, he bowled one of his fastest deliveries to dismiss the last England batter Gus Atkinson to draw the series.

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Here’s the list of bowlers to bowl the most overs in the Test series 

Former India opener Sunil Gavaskar was in awe of Siraj, and how brilliantly he managed to play all five Tests, throwing the buzz of workload management out of the window. “Mohammed Siraj debunked forever this business of workload. I hope that the workload word gets taken out of Indian cricket dictionary. For 5 Test matches, non-stop he has bowled 7-8 over spells, because the captain wanted him and the country expected of him,” Gavaskar said.

Siraj leaves his imprint in each innings
A look at the series shows Siraj’s lion-hearted efforts didn’t get the due until the last day of the series. However, Siraj left his impression whenever he came out to bowl.

Akash Deep overshadows Siraj in Edgbaston Test
Jasprit Bumrah missed the second Test at Edgbaston due to workload management, and the onus fell on Siraj to lead the attack in the company of Akash Deep and Prasidh Krishna. Siraj took 6/70 to help India bowl out England for 407 and take a lead of 180 runs. It was Siraj’s brilliant bowling at the death that saw England lose their last three wickets for just 11 runs. 

In England’s second innings, Siraj got overshadowed by Deep who took 6/99 to bag a 10-wicket haul. However, Siraj’s 7-wicket haul in the match ended up as a footnote. But he produced a good supporting act to Deep who was in great rhythm and bowled accurately and cleverly to deceive the England batters with movements off the pitch.

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Siraj unleashes magic at the Oval
England were in control of the Oval Test at 142/2, trailing by just 72 runs to India’s first innings total of 224. Siraj was brought into the attack as the last hope to bring India back into the match. He unleashed his cross-seam or scrambled seam deliveries to trigger a collapse where England lost three wickets for 53 runs. He got three prized wickets of Ollie Pope, Joe Root and Jacob Bethell in an unchanged spell of eight overs to give India hope. All England could then manage was a lead of just 23 runs. 

In the fourth innings, he dismissed England opener Zak Crawley in a bluff move where he bowled a yorker while the field was set for a short ball. He got Pope again with a ball that nipped back. Although Siraj struggled to take another wicket on the fourth day, he kept on streaming in with the same zeal, intensity and pace that he began his first spell of the series. He exhibited great dedication for the game and playing for the country. 

On the fifth morning, fans saw the real beast mode of Siraj who never fell short of belief even as the required runs came down to single digits. Siraj bowled smartly, keeping it wide and away from Jamie Smith’s reach to get the England batter to edge behind. He set Jamie Overton up with an inswinger after a few outswingers. And the yorker to bowl Atkinson will be a moment to cherish. Eventually, it was Siraj’s belief in himself that he could do the job for India triumphed despite odds against the ‘Men In Blue’. 

Harry Brook, who scored a brilliant ton in the fourth innings but in vain, was in awe of Siraj after the match. He said, “Siraj has played every game of the series and has bowled every ball 85+mph, respect him a lot. He was always going to go out, massive credit to him.”

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Siraj tops among India bowlers in interesting statistic
Since Mohammed Siraj wore Indian colours in whites, he has bowled the most overs in SENA countries, even outlasting Jasprit Bumrah. However, Siraj falls short of the number of wickets taken in SENA countries in comparison to Bumrah even when both have played the same number of matches. Nevertheless, Siraj has lifted his game, and taken the role of a lead strike bowler whenever Bumrah has not been available. Siraj’s numbers speak volumes of how much workload he has managed though it is hardly spoken about. 

List of bowlers with most overs bowled in SENA countries since Siraj’s debut

Also, since Siraj’s debut, he is fourth in the list of fast bowlers who has delivered the most overs in Tests in all conditions combined.

Siraj is competitive and raw in emotions 
In the Lord’s Test, the last-wicket pair of Siraj and Ravindra Jadeja were taking India closer to the finish line. But unfortunately, the ball after a defence from Siraj dribbled to remove one bail, and India lost the match by 22 runs. Siraj was extremely dejected, and fist bumped his bat to express his disappointment. It just shows how passionate and competitive Siraj is when it comes to playing for India. 

And when Siraj bowls, he never fails to give it back to batters and even goes on to rub them the wrong way to induce mistakes from them. In the England series, he even tried to get under the skin of Joe Root. But the experienced batter tackled it admirably, and said Siraj is a “warrior”.

“He is someone that you want on your team. He is that kind of character. He gives everything for India, and it is credit to him for that, the way he approaches cricket. He has got this fake anger about him sometimes, which I can see straight through,” Root said. “You can tell he is actually a really nice lad. But he tries incredibly hard. He is a very skilful player.”

After the series, the only phrase that is going viral now to get some much required self-belief is “We believe in Siraj bhai.”

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