'Bigger Challenge, Better Siraj': Venkatapathy Raju hails India pacer after Oval Heroics, has high hopes from Shubman Gill's Team | Exclusive

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Mohammed Siraj emerged as a gladiator, paving India's dramatic victory at the Oval as the Indian team registered a 2-2 series stalemate against England at the end of a gruelling series.

Siraj, who dropped a catch of Harry Brook and almost became the villain, rose from the ruins to showcase his immense grit. The India pacer dismantled English batters on Day 5, when they were just 35 runs away from victory.

The Hyderabad cricketer picked up 3 wickets and had the final act of the series, when he knocked over Gus Atkinson as India won by just 6 runs, their smallest win margin till date in the red-ball format.

In the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, Siraj took the onus on himself and spearheaded the pace attack. The 31-year-old speedster played all five Test matches and ended up with 23 wickets, the most by a bowler in the series. It has been a defining series for Siraj, who has emerged out of the second-fiddle label (to Jasprit Bumrah), by transforming himself as the prime bowler of the team.

And a fellow Hyderabadi, and former India spinner, Venkatapathy Raju, spoke to myKhel with a happy charm in his voice. As we talked with him on Tuesday (August 5) afternoon, he was coming back from Mumbai after his Telugu commentary stint, but gave his thoughts on Mohammed Siraj, Shubman Gill and more.

"Mohammed Siraj has been brilliant. He is the only pacer who played all 5 Test matches, and that is massive. Sunil Gavaskar also gave him a huge compliment, comparing him with Glen McGrath, which speaks for itself. He has bowled with intensity at the crucial times, it's not easy. The bigger the challenge, the better he is."

Siraj also had a mishap on the field when he dropped Harry Brook on just 19 on the 4th Day. Brook converted the chance to a century, but Siraj, as he revealed, came up with a pledge and belief fuelled by Cristiano Ronaldo that he would win the match for India.

"After dropping the catch of Harry Brook, the way he came back is commendable. The hard work which he has put in is terrific, it's never easy to bowl continuously. Everybody was bowling in patches but Siraj kept on going till the very end," Raju said.

As the Indian team looks forward for the next assignments in the current World Test Championship Cycle, Raju believes the team will do better. Although he hails the Indian batters for their outing in English conditions, the former India player also conceded the fact that the expectation will be greater for new skipper Shubman Gill and his band after the effort in England.

"That itself a big challenge. Nobody thought India would do so well. The way KL Rahul, Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja batted is terrific. Yashasvi Jaiswal also did well but will have to mature a bit, and I am sure he will end up scoring a lot of runs. They came back very strong despite trailing in the series and now the expectation has gone up," the former India cricketer concluded.

India's next Test assignment is a two-match home Test series against West Indies, and Raju opines the team must go with the full strength, especially after the mishap in 2024 against New Zealand, where India lost the series 0-3 at home.