Ind vs Pit Pred 5th: Joe

England cricket team batter Joe Root dubbed Mohammed Siraj as a warrior who gave everything for his team. His remarks came after the Indian pacer troubled the England batters yet again in the IND vs ENG 5th Test. Root, who set the stage for England in the mammoth 374 run-chase, labelled Siraj’s emotions as “fake angriness”, while going on to compliment him as a “really nice lad”.

Root in awe on Siraj

Speaking to reporters after Day 4 of IND vs ENG 5th Test, Root claimed that Siraj was so cool that any team wanted him to be on their side. The England batter said that he sees straight through the pacer’s “fake angriness” at times, adding that while he tries really hard, he was a very skillful player. Root claimed that he enjoyed playing against Siraj because of his work ethic and skill level. Root was dismissed by Siraj in the 1st innings after getting trapped for an LBW.

“He’s a warrior. He’s someone that you want on your team. He’s that cool kind of character. He gives everything for India and credit to him for that, the way he approaches cricket. He’s got this side fake angriness about him sometimes which I can see straight through. You can tell he’s actually a really nice lad,” Root said.

Siraj is currently the leading wicket-taker in the ongoing IND vs ENG Test series and has stepped up to lead the Indian pace attack in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah. He bagged four wickets in the 1st innings of the 5th Test before getting the crucial wickets of Zak Crawley and Ollie Pope in the 2nd.

Siraj has played all five Tests so far in this series and has made workload management a myth. India bowling coach Morne Morkel, too, heaped praise on the pacer for putting his hand up and performing whenever the team needed him to do so.