‘Happy’ Siraj back in his elements

Mohammed Siraj has a unique bond with Australia. It's the country where his dream of playing Test cricket came true but not before a couple of agonising weeks under isolation. Prior to the start of the 2020-21 series Down Under, the Indian team had been in hard quarantine due to Covid when the news of the father's demise reached him.

It was a cruel predicament. "Should I fly back to India to attend his funeral or stay back to fulfill his (father) dream of seeing his son play for India?" In normal circumstances, he could have flown in and flown back to Australia but those were not the normal times. Pandemic restrictions meant he would have to go through fresh hard quarantine upon his return. After much confabulation with the team management and counselling, Siraj decided to stay back. His father, wherever he might have been, couldn't have been any prouder.

With senior pacers Mohammed Shami (after the first Test) and Jasprit Bumrah (after the second Test) ruled out, Siraj took the mantle upon himself and played a crucial role in India's stirring comeback series win with 13 wickets in three Test, including a fifer in the decider in Brisbane.

Australia, in a way, turned a new chapter in Siraj's career.

While he came as a rookie to Australia for the first time, this time he was landing here as the second most experienced seamer who had already tasted success here. But the preceding few months hadn't gone well. In eight home Tests, he had taken just 12 wickets at an average of 44.16 balls per wicket and a strike rate of nearly 70 runs per wicket as opposed to his career average of around 30 and SR of 53.2.

In the absence of an injured Shami, it was imperative that Siraj supported Bumrah well. Whether it's just the vibe of the land or the conditions or the just a clearer mindset, Siraj was back in his elements -- his five wickets for the match in the Perth Test nicely setting the tone for the series.

The 30-year-old admitted he wasn't enjoying his bowling in the last few months but could make little sense of what was going wrong with him.

"I was bowling really well in the last six or seven months, but I was not getting wickets and as a human being, you keep thinking why you are not getting wickets," Siraj said after India's pink-ball match against PM's XI here on Sunday. "In trying too hard to get wickets, I was missing my line and length a little bit. But then I sat at home and thought about why it was happening to me. Then I decided that even if I didn’t get wickets, it’s okay but to the extent possible, I should enjoy my bowling. As a person, I realised that the more I enjoy bowling, the more I will get wickets. That was missing with me for a few matches. But now I am enjoying my bowling, and the wickets too are coming," he offered.

In a bid to rediscover his lost rhythm, Siraj, who was easily India's best pacer against PM's XI though he had only one wicket, had to fall back on his old coach Bharat Arun who has mentored him since he was Hyderebad's coach.

"As a person, I am the kind who, the more he enjoys, even if I don’t get wickets, I get a different kind of feeling," he continued. "When I wasn’t getting wickets, I got too worked up and kept thinking why I wasn’t getting wickets. In India, as you know, spinners bowl most of the overs and you are desperate to get wickets in those five-six overs you get. So, in that process, I got a little down about not getting wickets.

"I spoke to Bharat Arun sir. He knows me from a long time, and he has seen my bowling from very long back. He told me to enjoy my bowling and not run after wickets."

It's the same advice Siraj received from his bowling mate Jasprit Bumrah who was also his skipper in the opening Test.

"I always talk to Jassi bhai about the pitch," he noted. "Even before the first Test, I spoke to him and told him that these are the things happening with my bowling. The only thing he told me was, 'don’t chase wickets, just bowl consistently in one area and enjoy your bowling. If you don’t get wickets doing that, then come and ask me'. So, I did the same thing, and I am getting wickets."