Siraj updates on Bumrah's availability for fourth England Test
The Indian pacer confirmed that Jasprit Bumrah will feature in the lineup ahead of the Manchester Test
Mohammed Siraj cleared the speculations around Jasprit Bumrah's presence for the fourth Test against England, confirming that the Indian pace spearhead will be playing in Manchester.
Also offering an update on an injury blow to Akash Deep, Siraj told the reporters, "He (Bumrah) will play. Akash Deep has a groin issue, he bowled today and now physios will see. That’s what I know so far.
"But as the combinations keep changing, we need to be patient, as much as we can. Bowl in the right areas. If you saw the last game, they (England) batted with a lot of patience. We also felt like that's the real fun of Test cricket."
India will be bolstered by the presence of Bumrah, who has nabbed 12 wickets from two Tests, and is coming on the back of a strong display at Lord's.
Siraj on the other hand, has been India's leading wicket-taker from the three Tests so far - returning with 13 scalps from a total of 109 overs bowled.
Delving into his persistence with the ball, Siraj said, "There's no secret. The biggest motivation is getting to represent your country.
"When I play for India, I want to give my 100 percent. At the end of the day, I shouldn't feel any regrets, feel like I should've done something else, something more. So whatever the result may be, I want to give my 100 percent."
Trailing 2-1 in the five Test series, India have been dealt with injury blows ahead of the Manchester Test, with Nitish Kumar Reddy and Arshdeep Singh having been ruled out of the ongoings series.
Anshul Kamboj was named in India's squad for the remaining two Tests to add to the pace-bowling resources.
Meanwhile, wicket-keeper-batter Rishabh Pant's availability for the fourth Test is also under scanner after he picked up a blow to his index finger during the Lord's Test.
England had edged out India in a thrilling contest on Day 5 of the third Test to take the lead in the ICC World Test Championship series.
Conceding his emotions after a heartbreaking finish that saw Shoaib Bashir's delivery trickle down the face of his bat and onto the stumps, Siraj said, “It obviously hurts when you get out despite middling the ball.
"The way our (Ravindra Jadeja's and my) partnership was going, I felt I wouldn’t get out. I was that confident. But unfortunately, it didn’t happen that way, and I was extremely disappointed.
"Had we won the game from there, it would have been a different result altogether."