Watch: Mohammed Siraj pays tribute to Diogo Jota during ENG vs IND 3rd Test

Just after the wicket of Jamie Smith early in the second session of the second Test between England and India at Lord’s, India’s pacer, Mohammed Siraj, turned back to the stadium and pointed a ‘forever 20’ signal with his fingers before looking up at the sky. Notably, it’s a part of the tribute from the bowler to the late footballer, Diogo Jota. 

Jota was one of the favorite football players of Mohammad Siraj, and during the Lord’s Test, he got a chance to show respect to the Liverpool forward, who died on July 03, 2025, after he and his brother suffered a car accident in Cernadilla, Spain. The 28-year-old died a few days ago along with his brother, Andre Silva, when their Lamborghini car had a suspected tyre blowout.

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Siraj has always been a football fan for a long time, and he could always be seen to celebrate his wickets like Cristiano Ronaldo’s trademark ‘Siuuu.’ But the fact that he was seen paying tribute to Jota was expected, given that he had an interest in football. Many players across the world have paid tribute to the Portuguese talent.

Watch: Mohammed Siraj pays tribute to Diogo Jota during ENG vs IND 3rd Test 

It was the second ball of the 107th over of the innings. Jamie Smith and Brydon Crase had already rescued England with their 84-run stand for the eighth wicket after Jasprit Bumrah’s opening burst of three wickets in eight deliveries. But suddenly runs started to flow, and it was important for the bowlers to get the right plans and seize the runs to put pressure on the home camp.

Siraj went with a lovely delivery angled in that swung away from the length outside off, and the batter tried to punch away from the body and got an outside edge into the hands of the wicket-keeper. Dhruv Jurel, who was still keeping wickets on the second day, replacing injured Rishabh Pant, grabbed a fine catch.

That was the time Siraj turned back and paid tribute to Diogo. He also picked up the last wicket of Brydon Carse, who walked a long way across to get bundled out. England finished with 387 runs in the first innings, as the hard work will begin now for the Indian batters, after spending four sessions in the London heat.