PUNE: New Zealand captain and opening batter Tom Latham knows how devastating Mohammed Siraj can be when he starts to find movement, especially with the new ball. Playing at the Wankhede Stadium, in the second and final Test of the 2021 series, it was Siraj who set up India’s win.

Latham was leading the Kiwis then too, and with the series on the line, his left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel had done well to stop the Indian batters from running up a big first innings total (325 all out) by taking all 10 wickets.

With the first Test ending in a draw, India were under pressure to force a result too. On that turning track, the NZ captain is unlikely to forget the opening burst from Siraj, when he ran through the Kiwi top order in a four-over spell claiming 3/19.

He struck the first blow by removing Will Young, Latham was prised out five runs later before he reduced NZ to 17/3 by sending back Ross Taylor. NZ were all out for 62 in 28.1 overs in their first innings to help India win by 372 runs.

Last week’s Test at Bengaluru was the first time that the Kiwis were facing off against India in India after that Wankhede game and naturally Latham & Co would have been wary of the threat posed by Siraj with the new ball, especially with Jasprit Bumrah operating from the other end.

However, despite helpful conditions where the touring pacers had blown away the Indian batters for just 46, Siraj failed to make the same impact, finishing with figures of 18-2-84-2 and 7-3-16-0.

The performance of the pacers proved to be the difference in the Test match. For NZ, their pacemen shared 17 scalps. With their spinners struggling, the home side were banking on their speedsters, but they could manage just five wickets.

Going into the second Test, Siraj’s ability to make an impact in home conditions will be under scrutiny. Efforts like in 2021, at Mumbai, have been missing since.

There’s a stark difference in his home and away record. In 13 Tests at home, he has just 19 wickets to show for, at an average of 39.79 and strike rate of 64.84. In 19 Tests away from home, he has 61 scalps, average 28.66 and strike-rate of 52.02.

In the last big series at home, against England 2023-24, playing all four Tests, he had six wickets to show for when from the other end Bumrah was putting sending the stumps flying.

In the absence of Mohammed Shami, it is affecting the team’s plans. Bowling in Indian conditions can be tough for pacers but, having played 30 Tests, he has enough experience to adjust.

The big drawback right now is that he is not swinging the ball as he usually would. Compared to Bumrah, he leaked runs at an economy rate of 4.66 in Bengaluru. He was unable to build pressure on the batters.

The Indian team management is backing Siraj to come good. Assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate felt it looks to be case of a bowler going through a wicket drought. “I think Siraj bowled beautifully in the second innings. That hour of Test-match cricket on the last morning was really high quality. It maybe wasn’t a nicking wicket, which is obviously his big strength, particularly to left-handers when he moves the ball across. Again, probably not the answer you want to hear, but there’s nothing there to say he’s not bowling well or his rhythm’s not good.

“Maybe he’s just going through a little bit of a wicket drought. But no concerns again. I’m sure if he’s given the chance, we’ve got a few tactical things we want to work on coming around the wicket, challenging the stumps a little bit more. But his speeds are good, his accuracy is good. And I thought in the second innings he was excellent,” said ten Doeschate.

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