Siraj returned with four crucial wickets in England's first innings at The Oval.
Siraj returned with four crucial wickets in England's first innings on Friday (August 1). The right-arm quick dismissed Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook and Jacob Bethell, helping India restrict the hosts to 247 in the first innings.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Atherton said Siraj reminds him of Darren Gough, a fiery fast bowler from his own playing days. He further stated that Siraj is the sort of player who lifts the entire team with his energy and attitude.
“Absolutely, and the type of cricketer I think that just makes other people rise up as well. We had one way back in my time, Darren Gough, would just make people play better just because of the way they carried on in the middle and in the dressing room actually. When the going gets tough there are some characters that just grow a bit taller. He is one and everybody else will look at him,” Atherton said.
In reply to India’s first innings score of 224, the Three Lions got off to a blazing start, with Ben Duckett (43 off 38) and Zak Crawley (64 off 57) adding 92 runs for the opening wicket in just 77 deliveries.
However, the visiting pace attack, led by Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna, sparked a stunning turnaround. Both of them picked up four wickets each as the tourists conceded only a slender lead of 23 runs.
Riding on Yashasvi Jaiswal’s hundred (118) and half-centuries from Akash Deep (66), Ravindra Jadeja (53) and Washington Sundar (53), India posted 396/10 in their second innings, setting a target of 374 for England.
The Three Lions ended the third day at 50/1, needing another 324 runs to pull off a series-clinching victory. India, on the other hand, require 8 more wickets to level the series at The Oval.