ODI World Cup 2023: Communication is key for Siraj and India’s fast bowling campaign

With Mohammed Shami claiming his second fifer in three games; Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj displaying their top game, India has been a force to reckon with in this edition of the World Cup.

Mohammed Siraj celebrates after taking a wicket during ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Match 33 between India and Sri Lanka at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday. | Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI

Over the last few weeks, there are talks doing the rounds that the current fast bowling department has been India’s best. 

With Mohammed Shami claiming his second fifer in three games; Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj displaying their top game, India has been a force to reckon with in this edition of the World Cup.

However, Siraj, who claimed three wickets against Sri Lanka on Thursday and paved the way for the team’s entry into the semifinal, does not want to get carried away by such talks. In fact, he is not in favour of changing combinations every second game.

“When we are doing well everyone keeps saying that the combination is good but when the performances go down there are talks that this bowler should be dropped or that one,” he said at the mixed media zone.

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“With just one bad game, everyone talks about changes in combination and dropping the players. We are keeping all the negatives outside and taking all the positives along the way with us…”

So far in the tournament, the fast bowling department has played a major role in India’s campaign and Siraj believes that proper communication has been the key. “As you can see our fast bowling unit is very good, if I am not getting wickets Shami  bhai is stepping in and taking them or Jassi  bhai (Bumrah) is. It is going very well (at the moment) for us fast bowlers, we speak about what better line and length to bowl on at a wicket,” Siraj said.

“We are passing on these messages to each other which is very important. For fast bowlers, it is very important to bowl in a consistent area. In the 50-overs format, when you take a wicket or two in the powerplay, the opposition team gets pushed on the back-foot. It is very important to take wickets early and that is happening, so we want to continue with this momentum,” he added.

Being the leader of the pack, Bumrah has taken it upon himself to pass on his inputs on what lengths to bowl on a particular track.

“When Jassi  bhai bowls, he gets an idea about what line and length is better on a wicket. He relays the same message to us and I also speak with KL (Rahul) bhai because from his position, he can see how much the ball is swinging or how much movement is off the seam,” Siraj said.

“I get alerted on getting these messages; say the ball is not swinging, but I still try to find some swing but if there is nothing, then I switch to generating seam movement. It is very good for us as fast bowlers to get such messages and also for the team,” he said, when asked about what sort of messages are exchanged between the bowlers during a game.

After putting up a mammoth total, India handed a 302-run defeat to Sri Lanka and Siraj claimed three early wickets to put the opponent on the mat. And, more than the wickets, Siraj - who has claimed nine wickets from seven games - was happy to regain his rhythm. “Taking wickets is important and there is no doubt about that. But my rhythm was not consistent for the last 2-3 matches, sometimes I was in rhythm and sometimes I was not,” Siraj said.

“I am not judging myself with (the number of) wickets (taken). The fact that I was able to land the ball consistently (in good areas) and the swing which I got, that you saw, I am very happy about it and I want to carry this momentum forward…”