India lead by 244 runs at the end of Day 3.
India pacer Arshdeep Singh found the most wholesome way to shout out, Mohammed Siraj, following his exceptional six-wicket haul against England in the Edgbaston Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. Arshdeep intervened in Siraj’s post-third-day interview to update his famous quote, as seen in a video released by the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI). The left-arm pacer said that there is a change in the right-arm pacer’s famous dialogue, and it will now sound like – ‘I only believe in myself and Jassi (Jasprit Bumrah) bhai’.
Siraj’s original quote is from India’s T20 World Cup 2024 final triumph that went viral on the internet. Bumrah played a crucial role, bowling the most critical overs under pressure, guiding India to clinch the ICC title after a decade, defeating South Africa.
With tears in his eyes, Siraj, who didn’t feature in the Playing XI in that final, said: “I only believe on Jassi bhai, because game-changer player he is, only one guy – Jasprit Bumrah.”
While his English wasn’t grammatically correct, the emotions were raw, true, and instantly immortalised. And now, the 26-year-old pacer added a twist to it after the Hyderabad pacer’s fiery spell that gave India an upper hand in the second Test, especially in Bumrah’s absence due to workload management.
“Bhai, dialogue change. I only believe in myself and Jassi bhai. Aaj se dialogue change hai. Plan mein halka sa change hai,” added Arshdeep.
Siraj was seen praising India’s pace spearhead in many instances, but ironically, his stats show a different story without the shadow of his master. The speedster has picked up 69 scalps in 33 Tests, including just a fifer at an average of 33.82 when playing alongside Bumrah. In contrast, without Bumrah, he has taken 39 wickets in just 15 matches at a stunning 25.20.
Siraj himself added weight with responsibility in the absence of Bumrah, saying, “I love the responsibility. My aim was not to give up runs, bowl with as much control as possible and build pressure from my end.”
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The 31-year-old pacer was heavily criticised after the Headingley Test for not being able to provide control and support to Bumrah from the other end. While Siraj bowled well in patches, he conceded runs at over four runs per over in the match and managed just two wickets across two innings. However, it made a remarkable impact in the second Test, taking six wickets for 70 runs at an economy of 3.58. His spell proved to be a nightmare as England suffered a massive collapse from 384/4 to 407 all out, with a total of six batters departing on a duck. His six-fer gave India a massive 180-run first innings lead.
India have lost one wicket for 64 runs following a brisk start provided by openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul in their second innings. While Jaiswal returned to the pavilion for a quickfire 28 off 22 balls, the Men in Blue are leading by 244 runs at stumps on Day 3, with still nine wickets in hand.
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