Hallmark of a standout player and a great team is their ability to change — and execute — plans midway through a game. A combination of Ben Duckett’s onslaught on the second evening and R. Ashwin’s withdrawal due to family emergency meant India had no option but to switch into Plan B to keep England at bay.
Mohammed Siraj, the pacer who returned his best figures at home, said, revealed a quick meeting ahead of the start of the day’s play — with long spells being the mantra — made the job easier for the bowling unit. “In the morning when we got to know that Ash bhai is not there, more responsibility fell on us. Rohit bhai told us that we will need to bowl long spells and I love bowling long spells,” Siraj said after the third day’s play.
“For a fast bowler in Test match cricket, one cannot set up a batsman in three-four overs. And we got success due to long spells. We stopped runs and got wickets.”
