Speaking on ‘Match Centre Live’ after his six-wicket haul, Mohammed Siraj shared his emotions on conclusion of Day 3 of the second Test on JioHotstar: "This feeling is unbelievable. I’d been waiting for a moment like this for over a year. I always bowled well but wickets didn’t come. Today, the morning session felt good but still no breakthrough—so these six wickets are really special. The pitch was slow, but I knew I had a responsibility. I haven’t played too many matches recently, but with experience, I knew not to try too much. Just keep bowling in the right areas. That builds pressure and changes the atmosphere. I’ve played 38 Tests, so my aim was to bring stability. With 600 runs on the board, I didn’t want to go hunting for wickets—I just wanted to be consistent. I love responsibility, I love challenges. I’ve seen many challenges in life, and I feel I perform best when there’s a burden on my shoulders."
JioHotstar expert Varun Aaron commented on England’s collapse: "I love the second new ball. There was so much movement on Day 3, it almost gives you motion sickness. It’s been up and down, left and right—so much has happened. England were on a roll, then India clawed their way back. Post-lunch, we bowled some tight lines, and once the second new ball was taken, the game changed completely—20 runs for five wickets. That’s a collapse we saw from India in the last Test, but this time it was England. It just shows what good old-fashioned fast bowling can do—stump to stump, every wicket-catching mode in play—and these are the results you get."
JioHotstar expert Jonathan Trott also shared his thoughts on the Day 3 performance: "One thing I can say is that everyone who attended Day 3 of this Test will go home thoroughly satisfied. The quality of cricket was outstanding. The batting from Harry Brook and Jamie Smith was second to none. Yes, we can talk about some questionable captaincy and bowling lengths, but credit to the English batsmen. Then, the way India came out shows they clearly had a discussion in the dressing room about intent. They wanted to be positive and ensure they got enough runs on the board to bowl England out."
Reflecting on Mohammed Siraj’s brilliant six-wicket haul, Varun Aaron remarked: "The difference in Siraj’s numbers when Bumrah isn’t playing is drastic—it shows he relishes leadership. Like Shubman Gill with the bat, he enjoys taking charge of the bowling unit. I’d say he had a bit of luck early on today—luck earned from his consistent efforts in the last match. He stuck to his strengths—setting batters up with the away-going delivery and then using that sharp in-dipper, which has become one of his biggest weapons. That’s now Siraj’s best bowling performance in England: 6 for 70. Brilliant execution."
Reflecting on England’s major highlight of the innings of Brook-Smith partnership, Varun said: "They desperately needed a big partnership—and Harry Brook and Jamie Smith delivered. But let’s not forget, there were six ducks in that innings—six! That’s a huge number. This partnership made up the bulk of England’s runs. Brilliant batting under pressure—they had their backs against the wall and came out swinging. Yes, some of the short-pitched bowling played into their strengths, but this was still one of the best partnerships I’ve seen in Test cricket. Unfortunately, the rest of the line-up didn’t step up. Without those six ducks, we might’ve had a much tighter contest, but as things stand, India are way, way ahead."
Catch Day 4 of the second Test of India’s tour of England, today at 3:30 PM, live on JioHotstar