India head into the final day of the Edgbaston Test against England, reqyuiring seven wickets in order to script a famous victory. After setting up a humongous target of 608 for the hosts thanks to an amazing century from Shubman Gill along with fifties from KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja, the Men in Blue also managed to pick up three wickets in the final 16 overs of Day 4, restricting the hosts to 72/3 before the end of play.
Siraj has been superb with the ball in the second Test
One of India's top performers in this match so far has been pacer Mohammed Siraj. The 31-year-old recorded figures of 6/70 in England's first innings and played a key role in bundling them out for 407. He followed that up by dismissing Zak Crawley for a duck on Day 4 and took his wicket tally for the match to seven. He will definitely be looking to take more scalps as the final day of the match commences.
Following the conclusion of Day 4, India bowling coach Morne Morkel showered praise on both Siraj and Akash Deep for having taken 13 wickets between them so far in the match. Notably, no other than Indian bowler has been able to pick up a scalp other than the two seamers in the second Test. Morkel further stated that Siraj is someone who deserves more respect and credit for the effort that he gives in every match.
"Siraj is a guy that I've got a lot of respect for. He's a guy that always will push his body to the limits. I think sometimes the guilty part of him is trying too hard so for us. It's about managing that sort of aggression and managing that intensity because he really bowls with his heart on his sleeve. I think sometimes those sort of things can give you that inconsistency," Morkel said after the end of Day 4.
"In a match that he's now the leader of the attack, he got the wickets, but for me in terms of effort and energy and with a sore body, he's always done and will put his hand up, and he wants to bowl that over. I don't think sometimes we give him enough credit for that," he added.
Meanwhile, England will be requiring 536 runs in order to win the game and take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series when they step out to bat on the fifth day. Currently, Ollie Pope is unbeaten on 24 while Harry Brook is batting on 15 and the duo formed a 22-run stand by the end of the fourth day to provide some much-needed stability to the side. It will be interesting to see in which direction the match heads to on the final day.