This is exactly what Shubman Gill had said about Mohammed Siraj after the completion of the two-Test series against Sri Lanka last month. India won the rubber 1-0, but it could have been 2-0 if not for bowlers failing to take wickets in Colombo on the fourth and fifth days. Siraj, who took four wickets in the entire series, was blamed too for the Colombo draw.
At one time, India were in the driver’s seat, but then the bowlers came a cropper when Sri Lanka came out to bat in their second innings. The India Test captain had said some bowlers take time after long breaks to find their rhythm, and Siraj was one of them. Prior to the Test series, Siraj had played the one-off Test against Afghanistan in early June.
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Siraj, along with Devdutt Padikkal, was the last-minute inclusion to the South Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy final against the eventual champions East Zone. In both innings on a belter of a track at Chennai, Siraj came up with figures 0/140 and 1/47.
“I’m purely a rhythm bowler,” Siraj said after the Duleep Trophy final. “If I’m not in sync, I can’t explode through the crease. That was the struggle in Sri Lanka – my run-up felt disjointed. Some strides were too short, others were too long, and that broke my flow and cost me pace.
“Every bowler’s body is different, but mine doesn’t handle long breaks well. A short break is fine, but in my ten-year career, I have never taken two full months off. I was working out in the gym and bowling occasionally, but no amount of practice can replicate match intensity. It was a new experience, but a valuable learning curve for me going forward,” he added.
Siraj is ever optimistic. Even though he failed to inspire South Zone to a trophy, he believes he bowled with a lot of heart at the Chidambaram Stadium, and hard work never gets wasted. That it pays off later.
“We came straight from Sri Lanka, where we spent three-and-a-half days fielding in the second Test, and within a week, we were out here playing in Chennai’s sweltering heat. But for me, it comes down to passion. When you’re representing your country, you can’t make excuses. You have to give every bit of your effort for your team and nation. Even if I didn’t get the wickets to show for it today, that hard work will pay off at the international level,” he said.