When India announced its squad for the ODI series against England and the Champions Trophy 2025, skipper Rohit Sharma was asked about the reason for Mohammed Siraj’s exclusion from the team’s squad.
Rohit Sharma claimed that Siraj is not well suited to bowl with the old ball and is not effective after his new ball spell. However, former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar thinks otherwise and feels that Siraj is still a quality bowler.
Bangar reminded the viewers of Siraj’s brilliant performances in which he rattled the Sri Lankan batting line-up in the Asia Cup and also played a key role in India’s win over Pakistan in the ODI World Cup 2023.
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Sanjay Bangar slams Rohit Sharma for dropping Mohammed Siraj
When Sanjay Bangar was asked about Rohit Sharma’s comments on Mohammed Siraj’s exclusion, he disagreed with it. Bangar feels that the players must not be categorized according to phases and called Siraj a good bowler with the old ball as well.
“This question was asked to Rohit as well in the press conference. And we got an idea of what the team management is thinking because they believe that Siraj’s utility, they would want to exploit more so with the new ball,” Bangar said.
“But it’s always a little bit risky to categorise players as okay; they can only be very effective in a particular phase,” the former India allrounder added.
While Mohammed Siraj has been exceptional with the new ball, his quality decreases when the ball gets old. But the 30-year-old seamer has the skills to run through a batting line-up when the ball is moving around and he has proved it a no. of times.
Sanjay Bangar remembers Mohammed Siraj’s incredible outings
Sanjay Bangar further reminded the viewers when Mohammed Siraj broke the important partnership between Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in the India-Pakistan match in Ahmedabad. He also remembered how Siraj ran through Sri Lanka’s batting line-up in the Asia Cup 2023 final.
“I am a little bit surprised as to how Siraj was part of the winning team as well. Because in some of the games, he did really well in the middle overs as well. The game against Pakistan in Ahmedabad comes to my mind, where he came and broke the partnership,” Bangar said.
“So, I feel that he has been India’s prime bowler, even if you remember the Asia Cup. He took a fifer just close to nothing against Sri Lanka in the finals. So, I think there is a little bit of surprise, and the reason given is that they are looking at who is better-suited phase-wise. But I think a quality player is a quality player irrespective of the phase,” he added.
Mohammed Siraj broke the dangerous-looking partnership by dismissing Babar Azam in the India-Pakistan clash in Ahmedabad. He had also picked a superb 6-21 in the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka to take India to the title win.
Arshdeep Singh ahead of Mohammed Siraj
India decided to go with Arshdeep Singh ahead of Mohammed Siraj because of the former’s death overs skills. The left-armer is a potent option for slog-overs with his ability to bowl good yorkers.
Arshdeep Singh has a good T20I record and is also India’s highest wicket-taker in the format. He has a good amount of experience of bowling at the death overs.
In the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, who is not confirmed for the Champions Trophy due to injury, Arshdeep is likely to serve as India’s death bowling option. Arshdeep also had a good Vijay Hazare Trophy which paved his way into the squad.
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