‘He was desperate for success’ – Sanjay Manjrekar praises Mohammed Siraj for lion hearted effort during MCG Test

Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj put in an amazing performance during the fourth day of the MCG Test on Sunday. The 30-year-old bowled with aggression to pick 3/70 from his 23 overs. This effort has earned the pace bowler Hyderabad huge praise from former Indian batter Sanjay Manjrekar. 

Mohammed Siraj began his second innings with the wicket of Usman Khawaja for 21. The right-arm seamer then got the scalp of Steve Smith just after lunch and saw India take 4 wickets in real quick time. The biggest wicket for Siraj on Sunday was that of Marnus Labuschagne who frustrated Indian bowlers with his knock of 70. 

During his chat with Star Sports on Sunday, Manjrekar said “The fact of the matter is Mohammed Siraj realized that he had to put in his best show. So, what he did basically was just run in with a lot more energy, just put in a lot more effort. And, sometimes, that's all you need. And it was evident when we saw the speed gun, he was four or five kilometres quicker”

Is MCG the redemption arc for Mohammed Siraj?

Indian bowlers were under the scanner for their lack of support for Jasprit Bumrah before the MCG Test. Siraj bowled 23 overs in the first innings and went wicketless while conceding 122 runs. With the likes of Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana in the wings, the pressure was starting to mount on the 30-year-old pacer.

In the second innings, Siraj came running in and began to trouble the batters with his movement. Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne had to endure the constant threat from Siraj who kept bowling tight lines. One of the most endearing aspects was that Siraj seemed to be bending his back a lot more and bowling at good speeds. 

This wasn’t lost on Manjrekar, who while making his observations on Star Sports said “There were a couple of balls over that were touching 140. In the first innings, it was maybe 134, 135. So, sometimes, it's just about bending your back and forgetting about all the other issues. And that's what he did. And he was desperate for success. And sometimes when you push against the wall, and we've seen that with Mohammed Siraj, he comes up with the goods."