Published Aug 04, 2025 | 5:30 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 04, 2025 | 5:35 PM
Mohammed Siraj (X)
Synopsis: India defeated England by six runs in the fifth Test at The Oval on Monday, 4 August, levelling the Anderson Tendulkar Trophy series 2-2. Mohammed Siraj was India’s hero, taking a decisive five-wicket haul, including three wickets on a tense final morning.
India pulled off a remarkable victory against England in the fifth Test at The Oval on Monday, 4 August, winning by just six runs to level the Anderson Tendulkar Trophy series 2-2.
The result was decided in dramatic fashion. Chasing 374 in their fourth innings, England were bowled out 35 runs short on the final day.
Hyderabad’s own Mohammed Siraj was India’s hero along with Bengaluru’s Prasidh Krishna. Siraj took a decisive five-wicket haul, including three wickets on a tense final morning. His scalps included Jamie Smith, Jamie Overton and, finally, Gus Atkinson to seal the win.
Test cricket… absolute goosebumps.
Series 2–2, Performance 10/10!SUPERMEN from INDIA! What a Win. 💙🇮🇳🏏 pic.twitter.com/ORm1EVcbRH
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) August 4, 2025
“Mohammed and Krishna work together to defeat Pope and win it for India. The country of Gandhi’s dreams,” one fan wrote on X.
Siraj also finished the series as the leading wicket-taker. “I thought it was a game-changing moment when I failed to catch Harry Brook. This morning when I woke up, I took a resolve to finish the game for India. Can’t describe my feelings right now,” he said after the match.
Former India coach Ravi Shastri remarked:
“Siraj will no longer be just a DSP. He will get a promotion after he goes back to Hyderabad.”
When play began on Day 5, England needed 35 runs with four wickets in hand. They had been halted the previous evening by rain and bad light at 339 for 6.
Earlier, centuries from Joe Root and Harry Brook had put the hosts in control, their 195-run stand for the fourth wicket steering England close to the target. But once both fell, India’s seamers Siraj and Prasidh Krishna turned the tide late on Day 4 and carried that momentum into the final morning.
The lower order struggled for runs as Siraj and Krishna tightened their lines. Jamie Overton and Jamie Smith battled under pressure, but the Indian bowlers kept pressing.
In the decisive closing passage, Siraj and Krishna summoned one last effort to choke the scoring. Siraj had also been crucial in the first innings, taking 4 for 86 to keep India in contention.
Siraj has, in the past, been targeted not for his form but for his religious identity, and he has met such abuse with composure and outstanding performances on the field.
In 2021, Siraj was called ‘brown dog’ by a section of supporters at the Sydney Cricket Ground. After India’s T20 World Cup 2024 victory, as a practising Mulsim, when he thanked God in a social media post, it drew a wave of communal comments and online.
In 2023, during a Test in Ahmedabad after India’s Asia Cup win, where Siraj had been a match-winner, hostile crowd chants of “Jai Shri Ram” were directed at him and Mohammad Shami.
In May 2024, Siraj posted “All Eyes on Rafah” to express solidarity with Palestinians affected by Israeli airstrikes. Right-wing trolls attacked him online, calling him a “sympathiser of Hamas terrorists”. The backlash was so intense that he eventually deleted the post.
In February 2025, when he shared photographs from his Umrah pilgrimage to Mecca with a caption expressing gratitude, right-wing trolls targeted him with communal slurs and derogatory remarks.
Despite the abuse, no fast bowler has taken more wickets than Siraj in India’s overseas Test victories since 2020, and almost every time, his spells have been match-defining.
One of the greatest moments in Indian cricket history. And a moment where Mohd Siraj enters Indian cricket folklore.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) August 4, 2025
Siraj has taken 42 wickets in India’s overseas Test wins in SENA countries (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia) since 2020. His key contributions include:
Among Indian pacers, Bumrah leads with 63 wickets in SENA victories since 2020, with Siraj second on 42. No other Indian fast bowler has matched Siraj’s tally in these matches.
