"Hopefully, I Get an Opportunity to Shake His Hands": Stuart Broad Hails Indian Star After IND vs ENG 5th Test

Former England pacer Stuart Broad praised Indian fast bowler Mohammed Siraj for his outstanding performance in the fifth and final Test at The Oval. Playing his fifth consecutive match in the series, the 31-year-old showed great stamina and fighting spirit to help India win by just six runs.

India made a strong comeback by reducing England from 301/3 to 337/6 during their chase of 374 in the final session on Day 4. Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Broad said that while many people thought the early end to Day 4 broke India’s momentum, it actually helped from a bowler’s point of view.

Siraj Shines with Match-Winning Spell at The Oval

Mohammed Siraj helped India fight back in the first innings by taking four key wickets when England looked strong at 129/1 while chasing India's 224. But his most important spell came in the final innings. He took five wickets and helped India bowl England out for 367 in their chase of 374, turning the match in India’s favor.

After the match, former England pacer Stuart Broad praised Siraj on Sky Sports and said: "I am delighted for Mohammed Siraj. Hopefully, I get an opportunity to shake his hands because I was worried yesterday that we would be talking about that dropped catch (Brook's drop). And it would be the catch he would be boarding that plane home thinking, ‘If I had taken that, could things have been different?’"

Broad added: "For a bowler who gave everything in the series, he deserved to take the final wicket and be remembered for bowling his team to an exciting Test win instead of for a mistake on the boundary."

Siraj was named Player of the Match and finished as the highest wicket-taker of the series with 23 wickets in five Tests.

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“India Deserved Something from the Series” – Broad

Stuart Broad also said that the 2-2 draw was a fair result and praised both teams for their efforts. He shared: "India definitely deserved something out of the series. If you look at all the Test matches, they could have won, so they deserved something out of the series. Maybe not a win, because England also played some fantastic cricket."

Former India head coach Ravi Shastri called the draw a massive result, especially because the team missed senior players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah in some matches.

Shubman Gill, who led India for the first time in a Test series, scored 754 runs at an average of 75.40, including four centuries, and ended the series as the highest run-scorer. Siraj, under pressure, delivered one of his best performances with nine wickets in the final Test and led India to a six-run win at The Oval.