How one stump at Lord’s gave Siraj both joy and heartbreak
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "How one stump at Lord’s gave Siraj both joy and heartbreak")
How one stump at Lord’s gave Siraj both joy and heartbreak Photograph: (AFP)
In 2021, Siraj sealed a historic win at Lord’s with the stump in hand. In 2025, at the same ground, that stump became a symbol of heartbreak as he was bowled with 23 runs to win. From glory to grief, Siraj lived both highs and lows at the Home of Cricket.
In cricket and life, some moments stay forever in your heart. For Mohammed Siraj, one such joyful memory was at Lord’s in 2021, stump in hand, sprinting across the field after castling the off-stump of England’s James Anderson to seal a famous 151-run win on day 5. Fast forward to July 14, 2025, at the same iconic venue and that very stump became a symbol of heartbreak. India needed 23 more runs. Siraj was putting up a brave fight with the bat and was doing everything right for India. He had defended like a textbook tailender, blocking, ducking and surviving.
But fate had other plans. An off-spin delivery from Shoaib Bashir gripped and back-spun to dislodge the stump, the same one Siraj had once uprooted in glory. The heartbreak was instant. Siraj dropped to his knees, questioning his luck as the dream was over.
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This wasn’t just another loss. It was a brave fight put up by the Indian tailenders; at lunch on the final day, they were reeling at 112/8. However, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj stitched together a fightback, taking the score to 170. Victory was 23 runs away, but that just wasn't meant to be; God was kinder to England and fortune didn't favour the brave.
Parallels from 2021 Lord's Test
The parallels with the 2021 Test match at Lord's were strange. Back then, India was 209 for 8 before Shami and Bumrah’s unbeaten 89-run stand for the ninth wicket turned the match. Siraj did wonders with the ball: a four-wicket haul and that iconic celebration, stump in hand, Kohli roaring all over the place. He had taken eight wickets in the game, including the final blow that guided India to defend 272 in 60 overs.
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Now, in 2025, the hope of winning the game lay in the hands of Indian tail-enders. Bumrah and Siraj blocked 84 deliveries together and the Indian side was hoping for a miracle. However, Bashir found just enough from the pitch to break through and shatter the Indian dreams.
It’s strange how the same place can give you everything once and take it all away the next time. In 2021, Siraj walked off with the stump in hand and a smile at Lord’s. In 2025, he walked off again, but this time, head down, the same stump lying behind him.
In the end, cricket is the best leveller, bringing you up one day and down the next.
