India vs South Africa: Mohammed Siraj breathes fires but Indian batters disappoint again

He’s done it previously in limited-overs cricket, and now he’s done something similar in Test cricket as well. Remember the name, he is Mohammed Siraj. The Siraj who can break your hearts with his bowling, the Siraj who can be dependable and the Siraj who can strike for his team when it matters the most.

For India, on Day 1 of the second Test against South Africa in Cape Town on Wednesday, Siraj was someone who did all of the above. He broke South Africa’s hearts and sent their hopes of winning this series into tatters. It was almost like a one-man show in the first innings, as Siraj’s figures of 6/15 led South Africa’s collapse, being bundled out for 55, their lowest score in the post-apartheid era.

This was just months after Siraj’s figures of 6/21 had decimated Sri Lanka to a total of 50 in the Asia Cup 2023 final in Colombo.

Siraj breathes fire

There’s no doubt that Siraj is a beast when it comes to limited-overs cricket. He is a proven talent in white-ball cricket for India, and perhaps his stellar display with the ball against the Proteas on Wednesday was a stark reminder of how good he can be on the trickiest of pitches.

Having said that, South Africa’s decision to bat on a pitch that had a decent amount of grass did raise a few eyebrows, just like their batting in that first innings. But little did anyone know what was about to unfold.

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