Asia Cup final: Mohammad Siraj bowls dream spell

The only bright spot for Sri Lankans on the day of the final of the Asia Cup was the announcement from the Asian Cricket Council that the hardworking ground staff and curators at Pallekele and Colombo would receive a bonus of $50,000. That was the best spent Rs 42 lakh in a tournament that ended in an onfield damp squib.

Mohammad Siraj was simply irresistible, hitting the exact lines and lengths in an early spell that ripped out the heart of the Sri Lankan batting. Jasprit Bumrah opened the door, winkling out a wicket in the first over, but it was Siraj who put in a barnstorming performance.


The signs were there in his first over, when he worked over Kusal Mendis, beating the bat with four consecutive deliveries without drawing the edge.

Even as Mendis lived dangerously, Pathum Nissanka paid the price,opening the face of the bat while playing towards off for Ravindra Jadeja to come in and take a sharp catch low and to his right.

Two balls later, Siraj got one to come back into Sadeera Samarawickrama, beat the inside edge and nailed the batsman in front of the stumps. Even the review could not save Samarawickrama after the umpire's finger had gone up in a flash. Charith Asalanka played a poor shot first up, popping the ball to short extra cover, making it three wickets in four balls for Siraj. The hat-trick ball provided full entertainment. India had loaded the slip cordon and put fielders in catching positions close to the bat, only Dhananjaya de Silva to on drive into the vacant mid-on region.

With no fielders in the vicinity, it was Siraj who gave chase, going full tilt all the way to the boundary, only to be beaten by the ball.

Virat Kohli, standing at slip, was in splits watching Siraj’s efforts, but there were no smiles for Sri Lanka as Dhananjaya pushed at one away from his body and nicked off to the keeper.

Siraj became only the fourth bowler to take four wickets in an over in One - Day Internationals, after Chaminda Vaas, Mohammad Sami and Adil Rashid.

More importantly, he had reduced Sri Lanka to 12 for 5 and ended the match as a contest.

Siraj saved his best for his next over. Dasun Shanaka shaped to play a ball slanting towards him to leg only to find his off stump pegged back as the ball pitched, straightened and beat the outside edge Stuart Binny’s record ODI spell of 6 for 4 against Bangladesh was under serious threat as Siraj 5 for 4 from 4.4 overs. Eventually, Siraj would add one to his tally, ending with 7-1-21-6 as Sri Lanka crashed and burned to 50 all out in 15.2 overs.

It took India only 6.1 overs for India to knock off the needed runs, and the game put them in the perfect frame of mind in the lead-up to the World Cup.

Nobody would have imagined India would crush Sri Lanka in this manner in the final, but it was little surprise that Siraj performed as he did. For a time now he has been India’s key fast bowler in limited-overs cricket, along with Bumrah. He has kept a bowler of Shami’s quality out of the playing eleven, and on the day it was evident why.

Aside from generating serious heat, Siraj has the ability to move the ball just enough in the air and off the surface to keep batsmen guessing. When you play his type of bowling in two minds, not fully committed to either front foot or back, and indecisive about the type of shot you want to play, things are not going to end well.

Siraj has grown his game in the time since he made his international debut, mastering the scrambled seam delivery and getting control over the ball that leaves right-hand batsmen. Siraj can also give the captain long spells, as seven overs on the trot in hot and humid conditions, albeit powered by adrenalin, showed.

Overall, India could not have asked for more from this Asia Cup campaign. Only three ODIs against Australia, at home, separate this team and their World Cup campaign. All that remains is for key players to stay fit or regain fitness and India can hit the ground running with no excuses.