Siraj not losing sleep over workload management, ready to play all five Tests

Manchester, Jul 21 (PTI) Having bowled the most amount of overs in the ongoing Test series against England, Mohammed Siraj is not overly bothered about workload management, a term used frequently in Indian cricket.

Siraj is the only pacer in the Indian attack that has been part of all games thus far and if he has his way, the workhorse would be featuring in all five Tests.

The 31-year-old has bowled tirelessly in the series, rolling his arm for 109 overs. Jasprit Bumrah, who missed the second Test due to workload management, has bowled 86.4 overs, Prasidh Krishna 62 overs in two games and Akash Deep 72.1 overs in two games.

"Thank God, I have been fit and healthy so far. Yes there is workload to be considered as per science and if you go by the book how many overs Siraj bowled would be mentioned there," said Siraj, who has taken 13 wickets in the series including a six wicket haul at Edgbaston.

"Having said that, my mindset is to get the best use of the opportunity and win games for India." Despite having the maximum workload, there was no let up in Siraj's intensity during the training session on Monday.

He bowled full tilt for an hour alongside Bumrah, Prasidh, Anshul Kamboj and Shardul Thakur.

What is the secret to his energy? "There's no real secret. When you play for your country, that in itself is the biggest motivation. Representing the nation gives me all the energy I need. My only aim is to give 100% on the field so that when I go back and rest at night, I don't have regrets like "I could’ve done this" or “I missed that." Hats off to Ben Stokes ============== Siraj lauded England captain Ben Stokes for bowling two very long spells on day five at the Lord's where India fell short of the 193-run target by 22 runs.

Stokes' spells of 9.2 overs and 10 overs on either side of the lunch break couldn't have gone unnoticed.

"There’s nothing wrong with learning from the opposition. When someone from the other side does well, it's not shameful to acknowledge it. Stokes bowled a 10-over spell twice, which is not easy at all.

"As a fast bowler hats off to him. The match was on a knife's edge—could’ve gone either way—and the way he bowled was impressive. As bowlers, we always aim to perform and get wickets quickly for our team." Siraj is not the luckiest fast bowler around and he has made peace with that. A lot of times he doesn’t have much in the wickets column but Siraj has no regrets as long as he gives his everything on the field.

"I'm bowling really well, but sometimes luck doesn’t favour you. Every bowler wants a wicket every time they bowl. I tell myself that even if I don’t get wickets today, I’ll get them in the next match." When asked if he feels that concentrating on line and length rather than going for extra pace can be helpful, he replied in negative.

"Yes, sometimes that thought crosses my mind (in line and length), but if I change too much, I might leak runs. So I stick to my plan: keep hitting consistent areas. Even if I don’t get the wicket, maybe my pressure will help my bowling partner get one. That’s how bowling in partnership works." Did not feel I would get out: Siraj on Lord’s heartbreak ================================== Siraj was on his haunches after his forward prod off a Shoaib Bashir delivery trickled onto the stumps and it did take a few days to recover from that immense disappointment.

"It took a long time to get over. That match felt like we could’ve won. In 2021 too, we won on the last wicket. I'm very emotional. We fought hard—Jadeja did great, and even Bumrah bhai batted 54 balls. Still, we lost." "But I told myself: it’s 1-1 now, not over yet. That gave me motivation to do better, to focus more on my batting, especially overseas, where lower-order runs are crucial," he said.

There was plenty of heat from both teams in the Lord’s Test and Siraj expects that continue in the remaining two games.

"Yes, I think players need to sledge sometimes. It can disrupt a batter's concentration. If he's too defensive, maybe talking to him makes him try something different." "It’s not scripted, but yes, as a fast bowler, it’s fun when those mind games happen. Like Root ko bola last match mein ‘where is bazball?’. It is fun," he said.

We have to adapt: Siraj on Dukes ball going soft quickly ================================== Dukes ball has attracted plenty of attention in the series with players criticizing its tendency to go soft and out of shape rather early.

“Yes, back in 2021 tour, the ball was different. This time, the ball goes out of shape quickly—especially after 10 overs. When that happens, you can’t bowl with good backspin, which makes things harder as the shape is not proper. But we have to adapt. You won’t always get favourable conditions—you have to perform in tough situations too,” said the fighter in Siraj. PTI BS KHS KHS KHS