WATCH: Siraj forgets translator Jasprit Bumrah during post-match ceremony
The Indian bowling duo of Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah emerged as the star performers for the tricolor in the Cape Town Test to guide India to a 7-wicket victory. Rohit Sharma and Co had a task cut out after going down convincingly in the opening Test in Centurion by an innings and 32 runs.
However, the star bowling pair picked up six-wicket hauls each and ensured that India salvaged a draw in the 2-match series and leveled terms at 1-1. Siraj won the Player of the match award while Bumrah finished as the Player of the Series.
Interestingly, a hilarious incident occurred during the post-match presentation when Siraj forgot that his translator Bumrah was next to him. Responding to the first question of the presenter, the POTM went on to recount his spell in English before Bumrah nudged his fellow pacer to remind him why he was there.
” It’s my best figures in Test career. I tried to be consistent and hit the right areas. I wasn’t consistent in the previous match and that’s why we leaked a lot of runs. Worked hard on consistency and tried to be relentless with my lengths. When we play together, he (Bumrah) gets the message earlier. We try to analyse the wicket quicker. (Message to the fans) Thank you so much, keep supporting,” Siraj said at the post-match presentation.
IND vs SA 2nd Test Highlights
After Proteas stand-in skipper Dean Egar won the toss and opted to bat, the Indian attack spearheaded by Siraj wreaked havoc as the hosts were bundled out for a mere 55 in the first session of the game. Siraj stole the limelight to finish with a six-fer and put India in the driver's seat.
While all was going fine for India during their innings, they faced one of the worst collapses in history after going from 153 for 4 to being bundled out on 153. In a span of 11 balls, India lost six wickets without adding a single run to the scoreboard.
With India's lead under-100, the Proteas saw a chance of a fightback. However, this time Bumrah stood in their way, taking six scalps to decimate the Proteas batting lineup for 176. Opener Aiden Markram's century provided some respite to set a target of 79 runs which the Indian batters chased down with comfortable ease and took home the contest.
Here is the clip https://t.co/IUekFmzich pic.twitter.com/08ScnOFx9z
— Vishal Misra (@vishalmisra) January 4, 2024
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