With only one day left before the World Cup 2023, former Pakistan player Mohammad Amir names Mohammad Siraj as the best bowler for the lead-up in the tournament.
Mohammad Amir claims Siraj as best bowler
Despite the India team’s bowling attack being boosted with the return of the pacer Jasprit Bumrah for the World Cup tournament, the Pakistani former pacer Mohammad Amir believes Bumrah is not the best bowler for the leadup in the tournament.
Bumrah was almost 11 months out of action due to his injury. He missed the Indian Premier League 2023, Asia Cup 2022, and T20 World Cup. Earlier this year, Bumrah underwent surgery for a lower back stress fracture in New Zealand.
Mohammad Amir said that Bumrah has to work more to boost his performance in the World Cup. While he has a long road recovery in the World Cup season, the fast bowling department has another rising bowler Mohammed Siraj. He became the face of the Indian bowling attack in the absence of Bumrah.
When asked about the best bowler leading up to the World Cup Amir said, “I am really impressed with him. No one took him seriously or rated him highly when he stepped into white-ball cricket. The way he has progressed and performed in white ball cricket is just amazing and outstanding. He is improving by leaps and bounds.”
“He is a captain’s man. He is phenomenal with both the red and white ball. I would give credit to RCB. They have played a big role in his development. Virat Kohli has played a big role in his career. In fact, Siraj has said this many times that Virat supports him a lot,” Amir said.
“That’s a good sign. India did a very good thing that they didn’t write off Siraj. India supported him in every situation. Siraj gained a lot of confidence from that support. India continued to play him in every format. In Tests, he is at par with Shami and taking India’s pace attack to another level.”
“He is doing well for India in all formats. India was totally dependent and stuck on Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah in the last 3-4 years. But now their boys and new bowlers have started chipping in, which is a brilliant sign for the team,” Amir concluded.
With the Warmup games set to end by October 3, India is playing its second and finals warmup games against the Netherlands at Greenfield Stadium.