Mohammed Siraj's act 'unacceptable'; ICC told to punish India pacer for 'crossing the line': 'Should be repercussions'

Hindustan Times

13 hours ago

There is something different about this Indian team. The initial belief when Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma retired was that this bunch of cricketers to tour England may not have enough experience, or what would they do when Bazball comes hard at them? Well, about a month into the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, Shubman Gill and his team have proven a whole lot of detractors wrong. They have levelled the series 1-1, and, in all likelihood, are on their way to taking a 2-1 lead at Lord's. Will the ICC match referee punish Mohammed Siraj?(AFP)
However, what strikes the most about this team is how uncharacteristically aggressive and in your face these guys are, or have gotten, if one is to believe. There is constant sledging, run-ins with the opposition players, mind games and of course, 'grow some f*****g b***s'. We mean, when did this team become a bunch of baddies, eh? If Shubman Gill raised the heat close to stumps on Day 3, Mohammed Siraj kept at it during Day 4. Siraj, being the character that he is, is always expressive and a little over the top. But even by his standards, the India pacer was borderline playing with fines on Sunday.
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Look no further than the fiery send-off he gave to Ben Duckett after getting the England opener out, ramming a shoulder into him. The umpires immediately sprang into action, and disaster was avoided, but former Alastair Cook feels Siraj stepped over the line with his act. The former England captain feels there was no need for Siraj to behave the way he did, especially since he had already gotten his man out.
'That's unacceptable, but who is to blame now? Whether Duckett walked right into him and knew exactly what he was doing. Then again, you shouldn't shout in someone's face like that. I wholeheartedly say that was wrong. There should be no physical contact. Yes, celebrate a wicket like you mean it. But you've got him out; you don't need to look him in the eye from three inches and shout in his face. So I expect there to be repercussions, and there should be repercussions. That is my opinion. I thought that crossed the line,' Cook said on the BBC Test Match Special.
No problem with the Shubman Gill episode
Cook weighed in on the heated exchange involving Gill and England openers Duckett and Zak Crawley a day prior, saying he did not have a problem with it. Gill was enraged when Crawley successfully managed to waste time and ensure India could only produce one over when they could easily bowl two. Cook stood by the entertainment factor, saying such theatrics only add to the drama and the spice that is Test cricket.
'I loved it last night. I read a guy say it's not good for the kids under 12 years of age or whatever – he was part of some coaching set-up as well. So I understand from that point of view. But if I have paid money to come watch it, I really want to see that. Because I know what it really means to some of the players. They are playing for their country," added Cook.