Siraj is the most experienced Indian pacer in the Brisbane Test having played 2 Tests previously.
Former Indian batting great Sachin Tendulkar was known for having a tremendous eye for picking the little things in players' techniques and cashing in on them. More than 7 years after his retirement, Tendulkar still tends to pick out such things even by watching them on the television.
In one such occassion, he had a close eye on Mohammed Siraj's fingers and the seam while he bowls the outswinger and the inswinger and found out a peculiar change that the commentators could point out the consequence of.
Sachin Tendulkar said in a video on his Twitter account, "When Mohammed Siraj was bowling, I had a couple of guys say that the ball hit the crack and it nipped back something which I observed was completely different. Mohammed Siraj, when he was bowling outswingers, (reflecting on the shiny surface of the ball) this is the shiny side and what he would do is he would get his fingers behind the ball and release it."
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Not only did Tendulkar had a look at the fingers, he also picked out the change in seam positions during the two different deliveries.
"So the seam is pointing towards first slip, or sometimes second slip, and when he wanted to bowl in cutter which moves off the seam, instead of going behind the ball he went off the pitch. So I don't think it happened off the crack. It was Siraj's talent. His ability to bowl those in-cutters," he pointed out.
Here's the video:
It was Mohd. Siraj's ability & not the pitch that brought the ball in yesterday on Day 1 of the 4th Test!#AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/P1NCqLGIeK
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) January 16, 2021