Veteran Indian wicketkeeper batter Dinesh Karthik has insisted that India were at a loss after losing the services of Mohammed Siraj in the second Test match in Johannesburg. The Indian team was beaten comprehensively by the hosts South Africa to reignite their interest in the series as the affairs are at 1-1 going into the Cape Town Test. Karthik vowed that Siraj was the major piece missing from the puzzle as the Indian team failed to impress.
“India, being the number one Test cricketing nation in the world, they would be little disappointed. They probably didn’t bowl at their best. And the main reason why India struggled through this test match was obviously the absence of Siraj,” the Tamil Nadu captain said.
Speaking on his hamstring injury he added, “The hamstring injury not only put him in the backfoot but it put India’s bowling unit on the backfoot. Because he has the ability to seam the ball well in and out. And that would’ve been a massive difference,” Karthik was quoted as saying.
The 27-year-old Siraj had sustained a hamstring injury on the first day of the second Test match and was able to bowl only 9.5 overs before departing. It wasn't a different story either in the second innings as he managed to bowl only six overs and went wicketless in the entire match. In his absence, India had to depend on the bowling services of Shardul Thakur, who managed to pick up seven wickets in the first innings but couldn't repeat his heroics in the second innings.
Team India are already without ODI captain Rohit Sharma for the Test series while Virat Kohli also pulled out of the second Test with back spasm. Siraj has now become the latest player to be marred by injury as the team management struggles to put up match fit playing XI for the final Test in Cape Town. The series is tied at the moment at 1-1, while India still dream to win their first Test series in the Rainbow Nation. The third and final Test match will begin on Saturday (January 11) at Newlands in Cape Town.
