"Mohammed Siraj has been the biggest positive for India against Sri Lanka" - Mohammad Kaif
Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif believes Mohammed Siraj's rise has been India's biggest gain from their 3-0 win over Sri Lanka in the ODI series. The speedster picked up nine wickets in the series, including a fantastic 4/32 in the final ODI at Thiruvananthapuram.
The Men in Blue have struggled to pick wickets in the powerplay in the past, especially in Jasprit Bumrah's absence. However, Siraj was simply sensational with regular strikes in the first 10 overs to put the opposition on the backfoot straightaway.
Speaking to Star Sports, here's what Mohammad Kaif had to say about Mohammed Siraj's performance against Sri Lanka:
"The biggest positive has been Mohammed Siraj. Wanting to win the World Cup in India in flat conditions, I think Mohammed Siraj has done so well.
"If you see the last couple of matches, he's been bowling really well, getting the breakthrough with the new ball. He has got wickets even when he comes in to bowl towards the end."
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A good day on the field and it was wonderful to watch @ShubmanGill & @imVkohli bhai bat today. Congratulations on your 100s and thanks to the almighty for giving me this opportunity to contribute in team’s biggest win. Shukar 🙏🇮🇳 @BCCI https://t.co/ZDAVMRL250
Mohammad Kaif on India's death-bowling woes
The Men in Blue have been brilliant in the powerplay and also in the middle overs in recent bilateral series. However, Mohammad Kaif believes they need to sort out their death bowling before the ODI World Cup later this year.
The former cricketer shed light on how Dasun Shanaka smashed the bowlers all around the park in the first ODI on his way to a century albeit in a losing cause. Kaif stated:
"They have Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav who can take wickets in the middle overs. They have Umran Malik who can get wickets in the middle overs. But in the first ODI we saw that in the last 13 overs, there was no wicket taken by the Indian bowlers.
"Shanaka scored 100 in that game, although Sri Lanka had lost the game but I think we need to improve on our death bowling. That's where we are missing Bumrah very much because he is a genuine match winner, a wicket-taker."
SL scored about 100 runs with 2 wickets in hand. India's death bowling still remains its achilles heel.
The Men in Blue will be hopeful of Bumrah returning to action as soon as possible. Until then, however, their other bowlers will need to work on limiting the run-flow in the death overs in their upcoming series against New Zealand.