Mohammed Siraj's persona is like his fast bowling - full of emotion, passion and innocence. He wears his heart on his sleeves and while there could be moments of uncontrollable aggression, there is no denying Siraj's love for the game. On the second day of the fifth Test against England at The Oval, Siraj came up with a heart-warming gesture.
The day was officially dedicated to late England legend Graham Thorpe who passed away last year in August. As a tribute, all English players had opted to wear head bands in loving memory of one of the game's finest left-hand batters. Despite not being mandatory for the visiting players, Siraj chose to wear the head band to honour the English legend. Earlier in the series, Siraj had dedicated a wicket celebration to late footballer Dioogo Jota who had passed away in June to a road accident.
While winning hearts through his sweet gesture, Siraj was also at his menacing best as he picked up a four-wicket haul to stage India's dramatic fightback in the post-lunch session. England, who had raced away to 92-0 and 129-1 with an eye on a huge first innings lead, ended with a total of just 247, which meant a first innings lead of just 23.
Siraj's burst in the first hour after lunch was phenomenal as his sharp indippers had England's middle order in total disarray. Ollie Pope, who had gotten set, fell to a delivery that seamed in a mile while Joe Root suffered a rare failure in the same manner. Both batters were trapped LBW by vicious deliveries that left them with little chance of survival. Jacob Bethell, playing his first game of the series, was the third casualty and he too fell LBW with Siraj producing a masterclass in quality seam bowling. Fittingly, it was Siraj who wrapped up England's innings when he got another of his deadly in-seaming deliveries to castle Harry Brook who was the last man out.
With the wicket of Brook, his fourth of the innings, Siraj also became the leading wicket-taker in the series with 18 scalps, going past Ben Stokes's tally of 17 wickets although the England captain has played a game lesser. Nevertheless, it is an achievement that Siraj has deserved, given the mammoth workload he has shouldered this series, being the only pacer alongside Chris Woakes to have featured in all five Tests of this series.