Mohammed Siraj "Was Angry Because I...": Ajinkya Rahane's Big Admission
Ajinkya Rahane shared an intriguing tale of Mohammed Siraj, explaining how the pacer got angry with him over delayed introduction to attack.
- Ajinkya Rahane praised Mohammed Siraj as the highest wicket-taker in England series with 23 wickets
- Siraj delivered strongly when Jasprit Bumrah was absent from India's playing XI
- Rahane recalled Siraj's anger at being introduced late into the attack during 2020-21 Australia series
Just like the Indian cricketing fraternity, veteran India batter, Ajinkya Rahane, was highly impressed with what he saw from Mohammed Siraj on the tour of England. Especially in the matches when Jasprit Bumrah wasn't a part of India's playing XI, Siraj managed to take extra burden on himself and deliver. The pacer ended the 5-match series as the highest wicket-taker, with 23 scalps to his name. Siraj's performance earned plenty of plaudits from Rahane, who also recalled an incident from a 2020-21 series.
In fact, Rahane revealed that Siraj got upset with him as Rahane decided to introduce him to the attack quite late.
"What I like about Siraj is that he always liked to bowl longer spells. Even in the 2020-21 series, he was willing to do that with the same intensity. In Australia, when he was making his debut, he was angry because I had introduced him into the attack very late," said Rahane on his YouTube channel.
"He still has the anger inside him. This anger brings out the best in Mohammed Siraj. We saw in the England series. The aggression in his bowling and the intensity with which he bowls, he is always warmed up by the time he bowls his first ball. This is the great quality of a great bowler," he added.
Rahane further lauded Siraj's aggression that tends to bring the best out of him.
"Sometimes, other bowlers take 8-10 balls to warm up. Some bowlers take two balls to do so. But Siraj is always there. Just like James Anderson, he is always there from ball no.1. Even when he is bowling his eighth or ninth over in the spell, he still has the same aggression and intensity," said Rahane.
"I have noticed one change in him; he is confident about his own fields. When a bowler tells the captain, 'Give me this field', then it becomes really easy. In this series, the responsibility helped him when Jasprit Bumrah was not there," he added.
India Cricket Team
Ajinkya Rahane