World Cup 2023: One bad match doesn't make me a bad bowler, says Mohammed Siraj

Mohammed Siraj had an indifferent outing against Afghanistan but it doesn’t make him a “bad bowler”, the Hyderabad player said after contributing two wickets in India’s seven-wicket victory over Pakistan in a World Cup fixture on Saturday.

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Siraj registered figures of 2/50, and got the prized wicket of Babar Azam when Pakistan were coasting along for the third wicket. It proved to be a turning point as Pakistan went on to lose eight wickets in 36 runs.

“When we go to office you also have a day off, it cannot always be the same every time, the graph always comes down. So, I think to myself that I am not a bad bowler because of one match,” Siraj said in the post-match press conference.

“I always keep my confidence high that my bowling is good and I should be the number one bowler. This confidence helps me in bowling and I can’t be a bad bowler if I lose a match. I have backed myself to do that. I have got the result today.”

Coming from a humble background where his father was an auto-rickshaw driver and he couldn’t afford bowling spikes, Siraj expressed joy in playing a World Cup.

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“No sir, to be honest I never thought that I will play World Cup and that too because from where I had come. But now I am playing so it is a matter of achievement for me.

“And India and Pakistan are known for their high-intensity and high-pressure games. But today, I saw that and I felt good.”

On a flat track where there wasn’t much purchase for the bowlers, Siraj had to try variations and he bowled cross-seam so that the ball wobbles and also gets scuffed easily to aid in reverse swing.

“I started from third over. Because in the end, there could have been chances of reverse. Because when I was holding it seam-up it was coming easy on the bat. The batsman was not struggling. The ball was coming easy.”

“So, I thought, on this wicket I need to try cross seam because it can keep low and at times, you can get extra bounce. If you can extract bounce and if you get a wicket, that’s good for you.”

Asked to elaborate on the technicalities of Azam’s wicket, Siraj provided a detailed look into his mindset.

“I would like to say one thing, the ball didn’t come low, because he had to play it on front foot and he went back. Otherwise, the ball was executed just as I thought. The ball skidded a little, nothing else. That’s why.”

For a third straight World Cup match, India performed well with the ball. Australia were bowled out for 199, Afghanistan for 272 and Pakistan for 191.

“You see, our bowling unit is doing so well from the last three matches. It’s not like only one person is performing. Overall, the bowling unit is performing. If you don’t get a wicket, you’re building pressure and putting in a dot ball.

“In this, the team will get the success and the team will get the help. When Jassi bowls the ball – you can see what line is better on the wicket. When you’re on the third man and the final leg, you get to see the line and get some information from the keeper that this line is better on the wicket. So, it becomes easier to execute,” he explained.