Poor show in Sri Lanka was due to long break, feels Siraj

Following India’s recent Test tour of Sri Lanka, Mohammed Siraj came under scrutiny after an underwhelming performance in the two-match series.

The Hyderabad pacer took just one wicket in each of the four innings. Siraj’s woes continued in the Duleep Trophy final that concluded here on Thursday, where he managed just one wicket in South Zone’s defeat to East Zone.

In the first innings of the Duleep final, Siraj was lacklustre, but he came up with an improved effort in the second essay.

“In the first innings, the pitch looked fresh, so I tried to bowl too fast. Because I was forcing it, my rhythm was off. In the second, I told myself to forget the outcome and just run in with good, natural rhythm. The moment I did that, the old Siraj was back in action, and the ball started coming out beautifully,” he said.

Before the Lanka tour, Siraj’s last competitive game was the one-off Test against Afghanistan in June. The 32-year-old said the two-month break was the reason for his poor form.

“Coming off a two-month break straight into a match, my rhythm wasn’t quite there. Heading into this game, my primary goal was to find that flow. Playing this match helped tremendously,” said Siraj.

“After two months off, your body doesn’t react the same way — everything feels a beat slower. Getting through this game got my body moving again and brought my rhythm right back.”

While there is a lot of focus on workload management, Siraj reckoned his body doesn’t need long breaks.

“Every bowler’s body is different, mine doesn’t handle long breaks well. A short breather is fine, but in my career, I had never taken two full months off,” he quipped.

“I was working out in the gym and bowling occasionally, but no amount of practice can replicate match intensity. It was a new experience, but a learning curve for me going forward.”

In the two Tests, Siraj struggled with his pace as well, operating in the 120-130 kph zone and never touching 140 kph.

“I’m purely a rhythm bowler. If I’m not in sync, I can’t explode through the crease. That was the struggle in Sri Lanka — my run-up felt disjointed. Some strides were too short, others were too long, and that broke my flow and cost me pace. Out here, everything clicked, and the pace followed naturally,” he added.