No Bumrah, no matter. Siraj is here.

 It is Day 5 of the 5^th and final Test between England and India being played at the Oval in London, and I am writing this piece a few hours prior to the start of play. By the time I have finished tapping the last keys on my desktop, the game will be over. To that extent, I commence this piece without the benefit of hindsight. Of course, if the temperamental London skies do not open up apocalyptically, ruining the match altogether, we are almost certainly going to have a result. England need 35 runs to take them over the line to secure the series 3-1, whereas India will need to knock over the last three and a half wickets in double quick time to restore parity 2-2 and retain the Anderson-Tendulkar née Pataudi trophy. Why three and a half wickets, I hear you ask? That is down to whether England all-rounder Chris Woakes will be compelled to take strike one-handed with a broken shoulder to help his country squeak through. Flashback to the late West Indian pace bowler Malcolm Marshall who did the exact same thing with a broken thumb at Headingly in 1984. He then went on to take 7 wickets and the Windies won.

As long as the incandescent Joe Root was at the crease, it was all over bar the shouting in England’s favour. His brilliant partnership with the Sehwag-like Harry Brook had all but done the job. Then, against the run of play, both of them were dismissed by India’s tireless, Bumrah-less, spirited pace attack. Which left a very nervy Smith and the tail struggling to put bat to ball. India once again sensing hope. It has been that kind of series. That is when the rains came and play was called off, leaving the game tantalisingly poised for a couple of hours play today. Indian bowlers would have been rested overnight but will their upward momentum towards the close of play yesterday be halted? England will apply the heavy roller this morning making the pitch a little more batter friendly, but their nerves will still be jangling. In short, a nerve-tingling morning in prospect.

That is as far as the game itself goes. Moving on to the issue of the absent Jasprit Bumrah citing ‘workload management,’ I am not sure if there has ever been an instance when a player was named in the touring squad and allowed to pick and choose how many games he will play; in this case a self- imposed limit of three matches even before the series commenced for the world’s top-ranked fast bowler. I find that bizarre. It beggars belief that he played out his quota on largely batting friendly wickets, his potency defanged, then put his feet up with the series still hanging in the balance, as they went to the Oval for the final showdown. Ironically, England prepared its quickest, grassiest wicket for this game in the full knowledge that Bumrah will not play. Managing and nursing Bumrah was the team management’s quirky mantra. More than ever, we needed him steaming in and putting the fear of God into the English batters; not wrapped up in swaddling clothes and preserved in moth balls.

To the best of my knowledge, Bumrah is a decent bloke. Not a prima donna who needs to be handled with kid gloves. If his fitness was going to be a cause for perennial concern, he should not have boarded that plane to England. The selectors could have taken their chances with some tearaway rookie. After all, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma hung up their batting gloves for good not long before the team was announced and there was much anxious wringing of hands. They have not been missed. No one is indispensable.

Which brings me to Siraj, Krishna and Akash Deep. Mohammed Siraj has run himself into the ground, played every game in the series, stepped up to the plate and displayed a level of Herculean courage, skill and stamina that cannot be over-praised. If India pull off a win today, Siraj will be my undisputed Man of the Series, never mind the wonderful exploits of Gill, Jadeja, Root, Brook and the others. On second thoughts, he will be my MOS even if we do not share the series. What is more, in fits and starts, Siraj has received excellent support from Krishna, Akash Deep and on occasion, from all-rounders Sundar and Jadeja. That is one in the eye for our selectors. Bumrah is one of the greats, but he should not have been projected to be greater than the game itself. Mohammed Siraj, take a bow.

Postscript: India win! By 6 runs. Words are inadequate to describe what happened this morning at the Oval. Jaw dropping stuff. Suffice it to say that it was entirely appropriate that Mohammed Siraj was the Man of the Match, if not the series. Enough said.

(Published in the Deccan Chronicle on August 5, 2025).