Joe Root Is England's Best Batsman; I Am Targeting His Wicket: Mohammed Siraj

Indian right-arm seamer Mohammed Siraj has put himself in contention to play the first Test against England on Wednesday in Nottingham. India and England will lock horns in five Tests, starting on the 4th of August at the Trent Bridge. Mohammed Siraj has already set his sights on an under-pressure Joe Root, who had an underwhelming series with the bat against New Zealand in June.

Mohammed Siraj has arguably been one of the most improved bowlers of the current era, having played like a seasoned player in his brief Test career. Not only he has improved himself in international cricket, but also in the IPL, where batsmen used to milk him for plenty of runs. He currently 16 scalps in five Tests at 28.25. The right-arm paceman took six wickets in seven IPL games for the Royal Challengers Bangalore this year at 31.83 and maintained a decent economy rate of 7.35.

Mohammed Siraj underlined that Joe Root, the skipper, is also England’s best batsman and he remains his primary target among others. The 27-year old recalled dismissing the right-handed batsman once in the home series earlier this year and wants to take as many wickets as possible.

“Joe Root is England’s best batsman. I am targetting his wicket and there are others too who I want to target. I dismissed Root during the home series and he is part of my plan of action. My aim is to take as many wickets for my team as possible,” Siraj told Times of India.

I am confident we will beat England the way we beat Australia: Mohammed Siraj

Mohammed Siraj, who took a couple of wickets in the warm-up game, revealed that the Australia series taught him a lot and hailed Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy. The right-arm seamer remains confident of beating England in their backyard on this occasion as their team combination looks perfect.

“The Australia series taught me a lot. Playing under Ajju bhaiya was amazing. He backed me a lot. I still get goosebumps when I recall that day. Holding the winning trophy and celebrating with the team is a different feeling altogether. I am confident we will beat England the way we beat Australia. I am not nervous, I am confident. We have stars in our team,” he added.

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