Siraj Opens Up on Lord’s Heartbreak: “Felt Like I Wouldn’t Get Out, But It Still Happened.”
Mohammed Siraj has recalled the painful final moments of the Lord’s Test, where he was the last man dismissed in India’s narrow 22-run defeat to England. The pacer, speaking ahead of the Manchester Test, admitted that the manner of the loss stayed with him for a long time and took an emotional toll.
India needed just 23 runs to win when Siraj, batting alongside Ravindra Jadeja, was bowled by Shoaib Bashir. Despite defending the ball cleanly, it trickled back onto the stumps, dislodging the bails — a cruel end to an intense Test match.
“Obviously, I was very sad. I felt like I wouldn’t get out. I had that belief, especially the way I was batting. But after middling the ball, it still went on to hit the stumps. That moment was heartbreaking. If we had won, the series would’ve taken a different turn,” Siraj said.
The 30-year-old admitted that the loss lingered for days, given how close India came.
“It stayed with me for a long time. I’m an emotional person. It hurt — in 2021, I had taken the last wicket at Lord’s to win us the game. To now be the last one out in a loss — it was difficult. We were so close, and the fight was real.”
Siraj credited Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah for keeping India in the contest. “Jaddu bhai batted brilliantly, and even Jassi bhai played 54 balls. That fight gave me belief that the series wasn’t over.”
Reflecting on his own growth, Siraj said he is now more determined to contribute with the bat, especially overseas where lower-order runs often make the difference.
“We’ve always believed in pushing for runs from the tail. That’s something we focused on in Australia as well, and I’m continuing to work on it.”
Despite the loss, Siraj said the mood in the dressing room remained positive. “Nobody said anything negative. Everyone just said, ‘good fight.’ At one point, it looked like we’d lose by 80 runs, but we pushed it till tea. Losing by just 22 runs after that kind of fight — it hurt.”
India currently trails 1-2 in the five-Test series, with the fourth match set to begin in Manchester on July 23.
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