Mohammed Siraj is consistently at the top of the wickets: Zachary Hazlewood

The 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) has just concluded, and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) teammate Mohammad Siraj received high praise from Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) pacer Josh Hazlewood. Beginning on June 7, Siraj will compete against Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023 final at The Oval in London.

Notably, India were defeated by New Zealand in the first WTC final in 2021, and they will be vying for the Test mace in their second consecutive summit contest, while this would be Australia’s first final.

Siraj was crucial to RCB’s success in the sixteenth edition of the lucrative division. His accuracy in the powerplay and his ability to control his line and length in the death were two of the most notable transformations he underwent over the past year. Hazlewood missed the first half of the IPL due to an injury, but Siraj led RCB to victory in each of those encounters.

Hazlewood lauded Siraj, stating that the Indian bowler was bowling superbly and possessed exceptional control. Additionally, the 32-year-old stated that Siraj was competitive in every single statistic for which a bowler is eligible.

“I arrived a little late to RCB this year, but prior to my arrival, he was on fire. Hazlewood was quoted by the International Cricket Council (ICC) as saying, “His control was superb, and he is bowling well.”

“He is always among the top wicket-takers, and his economy rate was probably the deciding factor, as bowling at Chinnaswamy (RCB’s home ground) is sometimes impossible, and he was going at six or six-and-a-half an over,” the 32-year-old added.

Siraj concluded his 2023 IPL season with RCB as the team’s leading wicket-taker. The 29-year-old took 19 wickets in 14 matches at a 7.50 economy rate. He has taken 47 wickets in 33 innings at an economy rate of 3.02 in Test cricket and will be a crucial member of the Indian team.