Mohammed Siraj has shouldered a significant workload in India’s fast-bowling unit, particularly in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah. During India’s five-Test tour of England last year, Siraj bowled 1,113 deliveries, or 185.3 overs, across the series, maintaining his intensity right until the final ball.
Only Chris Woakes came close to Siraj’s workload, bowling 181 overs in the series. Siraj, meanwhile, finished as the leading wicket-taker with 23 wickets, 12 more than Woakes.
At a time when workload management has become an important part of fast-bowling, Siraj has often found himself at the other end of the spectrum. While many fast bowlers benefit from breaks between matches, Siraj feels that long periods away from competitive cricket can affect his rhythm.
He experienced that first-hand recently.
After playing the one-off Test against Afghanistan, which ended on June 8, Siraj had almost two months away from competitive cricket before returning for a warm-up game against an SLC XI in Colombo on August 7. The extended break, he admitted, affected his bowling rhythm.
“Every bowler’s body is different, but mine doesn’t handle long breaks well. A short breather is fine, but in my 10-year career, I had never taken two full months off. I was working out in the gym and bowling occasionally, but no amount of practice can replicate match intensity. It was a new experience, but a valuable learning curve for me going forward,” Siraj said after the Duleep Trophy final in Chennai.
Siraj found it difficult to regain his usual rhythm during the two-Test series in Sri Lanka. Among India’s frontline bowlers, he was used the least in the first Test in Galle, bowling nine overs in each innings. He bowled more in Colombo but finished the series with only 44 overs, 14.3 fewer than Prasidh Krishna.
His pace also dropped during the series, with Siraj largely operating in the late 120s and early 130s kmph. That was a significant difference from the speeds he produced during India’s memorable Test win at The Oval in England, where he bowled a 143kmph yorker to Gus Atkinson on the final day.
Siraj believes the issue was not his fitness but his rhythm.
“I’m purely a rhythm bowler. If I’m not in sync, I simply can’t explode through the crease. That was the struggle in Sri Lanka — my run-up felt disjointed. Some strides were too short, others were too long, and that broke my flow and cost me pace. Out here, everything clicked into place, and the pace followed naturally,” he said.
After returning from Sri Lanka, Siraj travelled to Chennai to represent South Zone under captain Tilak Varma in the Duleep Trophy final. The game gave him exactly what he needed — a long spell in a competitive match.
“Coming off a two-month break straight into a match, my rhythm wasn’t quite there. Heading into this game, finding that flow was my primary goal. Playing this match helped tremendously. After two months off, your body doesn’t react the same way — everything feels a beat slower. Getting through this game got my body moving again and brought my rhythm right back,” Siraj said.
In the intense Chennai heat, Siraj bowled 41 overs across South Zone’s two innings and finished the match feeling far more comfortable with his bowling.
“That’s just how my body works — the more overs I bowl, the better I get. If I don’t bowl extended spells, my rhythm won’t return. The break left my body feeling sluggish at the crease, so I told both myself and Tilak that I wanted to bowl as long as possible. I bowled spells of 10 and 11 overs, and that’s exactly what locked me back into rhythm,” he explained.
Siraj even began the domestic game with wicketkeeper N Jagadeesan standing up to the stumps. However, that did not mean he shortened his run-up.
“No, the run-up is the exact same. My approach relies on fluid, uninterrupted acceleration rather than staccato steps. Coming back after a two-month layoff, my body was just recalibrating its stride lengths. In this match, it all felt completely natural again,” Siraj said.
For Siraj, the key to his bowling remains simple: rhythm and repetition. He believes that while coaches and teammates can help, he is ultimately the best judge of what his body needs.
“At the end of the day, only I truly understand my own rhythm. No matter who I work with, it ultimately comes down to me running in smoothly. Once I do that, the rhythm takes care of itself,” he added.
