Nasser Hussain, the former England captain, is defending India’s Mohammed Siraj. This after the ICC fined Siraj for his over the top celebration during the Lord’s Test against England. Hussain says Siraj plays better when he’s pumped up and he thinks Test cricket needs that kind of passion since it’s an emotional game.
The issue was a little bump between Siraj and Ben Duckett, which some English fans didn’t like. The ICC called Siraj’s celebration provocative and said it could have caused an angry reaction from the batter. So he had to pay 15% of his match fee and got a demerit point for breaching the code of conduct.
But Hussain doesn’t think it was a big deal and feels Siraj shouldn’t have been fined. On a Sky Sports podcast, he said emotions are part of the game. He prefers players who are passionate rather than those who show no emotion.
“Siraj was fired up. I think he’s a better cricketer when he’s fired up. You’d love to have Siraj on your side. I didn’t think he should’ve been fined. He went close to the line, he was right in Duckett’s face; he didn’t barge (at) Duckett. If anything, Duckett went in that direction to get off the pitch. It wasn’t a shoulder barge. I think it’s a game of emotions, and you don’t need 22 robots. I love the tension,” Hussain said.
The Lord’s Test had some intense moments. On Day 3, England’s openers took their time getting to the field which annoyed the Indian team. Shubman Gill also had a heated argument with Zak Crawley and things stayed tense for the rest of the match. Ben Stokes was also aggressive when India was batting.
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Even though players like Gill swore and made an obscene gesture, Siraj was the only one who got in trouble with the officials. Mohammed Siraj is close to a suspension because of the fine and penalty from the ICC. He also got a demerit point after an earlier incident with Travis Head of Australia in 2024.
The ICC rules say four demerit points in two years means a ban. Siraj needs to be careful now. If he breaches the rules again, he might miss a crucial Test or limited-overs game.
