Just like any other football fan around the globe, the tragic death of Liverpool and Portugal forward Digo Jota had stunned India pacer Mohammed Siraj. A Portugal football fan, Siraj paid tribute to Jota on the second day of the ongoing third Test against England at Lord’s after dismissing Jamie Smith in the middle session of the day.
Following the dismissal of Smith, Siraj gestured his fingers in the form of 20 – Jota’s jersey number – as a mark of respect for the 28-year-old who lost his life alongside his brother Andre Silva in a car accident on the wee hours of July 3 in Spain.
In a video posted by the BCCI on social media, Siraj broke his silence on the emotional celebration and revealed he actuall wanted to do it in the previous Test match in Birmingham.
“When we were coming back from the last match, we got to know that Diogo Jota had died in an accident. As I am a Portugal fan, and he plays for CR7’s team, I felt emotional. I wanted to do it in the last match,” Siraj said after the day’s play on Friday.
He also reflected the unpredictability of life. “Life is very unpredictable. For whom are we fighting? For whom are we doing this? There is no guarantee of tomorrow, so I was shocked something like this could happen,” added the Indian speedster.
Siraj also revealed that he had discussed about the Jota tribute with fellow teammate Kuldeep Yadav, who is a Barcelona supporter. “I told him I want to make a gesture for Diogo Jota. Today I got a wicket, so I did it. That was my tribute to him,” said Siraj.
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