Big Twist! Baz McCullum Wanted Siraj To Be POTS, Not Gill: 'He Turned It Around'

Big Twist! Baz McCullum Wanted Siraj To Be POTS, Not Gill: 'He Turned It Around'

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Last Updated: August 05, 2025, 12:34 IST

Dinesh Karthik has revealed that Brendon McCullum wanted to nominate Mohammed Siraj for Player of the Series but couldn't change his original decision to give it to Shubman Gill.

Brendon McCullum nominated Shubman Gill as his POTS. (PC: AFP)

Former India cricketer Dinesh Karthik has revealed that England coach Brendon McCullum wanted Mohammed Siraj, and not Shubman Gill, to be his Player of the Series (POTS) after the Oval Test ended on Monday.

Karthik said after the fourth day, Gill was McCullum’s first choice and he told it to Mike Atherton, the English broadcaster hosting the presentation, but changed it after Siraj’s spell won India the last Test to level the series. However, by that time, the questions and presentation were prepared with Gill as the POTS.

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“If the match had gotten over yesterday (Day 4), Shubman Gill was the man of the series," Karthik said on Cricbuzz. “Brendon McCullum had said Shubman Gill. And obviously, Atherton was the one doing the presentation. So, he had all the questions ready. Everything was for Shubman Gill."

“Match got over today and Baz McCullum turned it around in a matter of half an hour, 40 minutes to Mohammed Siraj," Karthik added. “He even spoke about him in the post-match with Sky Sports — about how he enjoyed watching Siraj bowl and all the eloquent things he had to say about him."

McCullum was indeed effusive in his praise for Siraj’s game-changing abilities.

“He’s got that spirit you want to see in a fast bowler," McCullum had said. “Every time he had the ball in hand, there was energy. You could see how much it meant to him. It was one of those spells that can change a series, and today, it really did."

Siraj took a fifer in the second innings and a total of nine wickets in the Test, including the final one of Gus Atkinson with a searing yorker. He ended the series as the top wicket-taker with 23 scalps. Gill, on the other hand, was the highest run-scorer with 754 runs, the second highest for an Indian ever in an away series.

‘Siraj can rise beyond Bumrah now’: Karthik

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Karthik added that the fact that Siraj could step up and lead India’s wins in the two Tests that Jasprit Bumrah didn’t play, showed that he could now rise ‘beyond’ the senior quick.

“This is a five-Test match series where bat has dominated the ball," Karthik said. “It’s been hard work. And this boy has come in running every day of the series, when given the ball, with his heart out… When Bumrah didn’t play, Siraj stepped up and showed what it takes to win. It’s obviously no reflection on Bumrah. Because he is such a genius that you rely so much on Jasprit Bumrah to do the goods. But the fact is that when he wasn’t around, Mohamed Siraj stepped up. Showed what it takes to win. You know, I think he can now rise beyond," he added.

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First Published: August 05, 2025, 12:31 IST

News cricket Big Twist! Baz McCullum Wanted Siraj To Be POTS, Not Gill: 'He Turned It Around'

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