The Indian bowlers put up quite the show on the final day of the Lord’s Test which helped the team bundle England out for 120 in chase of 272. India required 51.5 overs to skittle the hosts and register a memorable win at Lord’s to go 1-0 up the five-Test series with Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah sharing seven wickets to inflict the bulk of the damage.

Ravindra Jadeja once again went wicketless in the match, which means this was only the third instance in history – twice in two matches – that all 20 wickets in a Test match were claimed by India’s pacers. If at Trent Bridge, it was Bumrah who made the noise by picking up a five-for in the second innings and thus, finishing the match with a nine-wicket-haul, at Lord’s, it was pacer Siraj, who shone through.

Siraj picked up eight wickets in the Test – 4/94 and 4/32 – to emerge as India’s standout bowler. Watching the youngsters excel has left former England captain Geoffrey Boycott highly impressed. Siraj is not even a year into his Test career but Boycott feels the fast bowler has turned into an ‘asset’ for the team.

“I like Siraj. He is full of energy. No one should tell him to curb anything. Let him flourish in his own way. He’s an asset for India, although he is fairly new,” Boycott told mid-day from the UK on Wednesday.

Boycott reflected on the atmosphere that exists within the Indian team, adding that the positivity around the unit is amazing to watch. This was most visible when India’s ninth-wicket pair of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami – who had added an unbeaten 89-run partnership – headed back to the change room during the lunch interval on Day 5, as the group of Indian players had come down from the balcony to welcome the batting pair with claps and cheers.

“I liked the way the Indian team rallied around each other. When Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah were batting [during their match-defining 89-run stand], the whole team was shouting from the balcony. They even came down to receive them. These things bring about solidarity,” Boycott pointed out.

Source: HT