Siraj to Join Warwickshire’s Towards County Season End

Warwickshire confirmed on Thursday that it had hired Mohammed Siraj for the remainder of the County season (August 18). Currently, Siraj is competing for India in an ODI series in Zimbabwe that ends on August 22. On September 12, Warwickshire faces Somerset at Edgbaston in their next county match.

Siraj will be the sixth Indian player to appear for England during the home campaign. While Umesh Yadav and Navdeep Saini have been playing for Middlesex and Kent, respectively,

Talking about opportunity, Siraj said, “I can’t wait to join up with the Bears squad. I have always enjoyed playing in England with India and I’m excited to experience County Cricket. Edgbaston is a world-class stadium and the atmosphere it created this year for the Test was special. I’m really looking forward to making it my home in September and hopefully helping the Bears end the season well. I would like to extend my gratitude to both Warwickshire County Cricket Club and BCCI for this opportunity.”

Cheteshwar Pujara has had an outstanding season while representing Sussex. Washington Sundar, a member of the Lancashire team, had a shoulder injury recently during a Royal London One-Day Cup match, which prevented him from playing in the Zimbabwe series. In addition, Siraj will join Krunal Pandya as the second Indian player to play for Warwickshire this year. Krunal Pandya is a member of their 50-over team.

Siraj has taken 194 wickets in 52 first-class games, with five five-wicket hauls and two ten-wicket hauls. His final Test match was in Birmingham, when the hosts defeated England by seven wickets to tie the series at two games each. In the first innings of that match, Siraj claimed a four-wicket haul.

Paul Farbrace, director of cricket for Warwickshire, commented on Siraj’s inclusion as he said, “Siraj is a fantastic addition to the squad and we can’t wait to welcome him to Warwickshire. He is one of the best fast bowlers in the world right now and his knowledge and experience will help bring an added dimension to our line-up. It’s been clear that we needed to strengthen our bowling attack for the crucial run-in period and I’m excited to see what Siraj can do in these three games.”

With just one victory in 11 games, Warwickshire is now ranked ninth in County Championship Division One. They will play Gloucestershire and Hampshire after their match against Somerset, with the latter being a home match.