Siraj is currently the leading wicket-taker in the ongoing Test series against England.
Former cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra has highlighted the importance of Mohammed Siraj in the Indian bowling attack, stating that the Hyderabad pacer’s worth is overshadowed by the presence of Jasprit Bumrah at times.
Siraj is currently the leading wicket-taker in the ongoing Test series against England with one scalp more than Bumrah after three matches.
Chopra mentioned that Siraj's performances have been quite remarkable in recent months but due to the mode of dismissals as well as the sheer star power of Bumrah, it is easy for analysts and fans to sometimes forget his contributions.
"Not all bowlers might be as skillful as Bumrah, and at times, when you are with Bumrah, you aren't noticed despite being skillful. You will look inferior whenever you are with an all-time great. Then people will dismiss you. It would have seemed like that when people were playing with Sachin paaji and Virat."
"That does not mean the guy is not good. He is skillful. Sometimes a bowler like Siraj is dependent on others. If you look at Bumrah, he gets a lot of dismissals bowled. Siraj's best wicket-taking method is caught by others. If he doesn't get that help, like Jamie Smith's catch was dropped, the poor guy keeps bowling, but is unable to pick up those many wickets," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
Apart from the chatter around Bumrah's participation in the fourth Test at Old Trafford, experts have also raised concerns about Siraj's workload. The latter has bowled 109 overs in three Test matches so far, the most by an Indian bowler on the tour.
Chopra expressed his appreciation for Siraj's workload over the past two years and lauded his consistency.
"If you see Siraj's workload over the last two years (since January 1, 2023), you will have to sit back and admire, and appreciate. If you talk about the fast bowlers across the world, he is in the third spot in terms of the number of overs bowled. Pat Cummins (871.3 overs), Mitchell Starc (856.2 overs) and Mohammed Siraj (792.5 overs) are there in that," Chopra remarked.
"When we look at it from the Indian point of view, no one has bowled more overs than him. In fact, if we see overall for India, he is in the second spot, only behind Jaddu. Jaddu (990 overs) has bowled nearly 1000 overs, and he has also bowled close to 800. He bowls a lot of overs," he added.