HYDERABAD: From being a First Lancer ‘Maidan’ cricketer, which is nestled on the edge of the posh hills of Banjara, to becoming the mainstay of the Indian cricket team, mohamed sirajThe career of has experienced phenomenal growth. With Jasprit Bumrah with injuries and mohamed chami not being consistent, Siraj has come out of the shadows over the past year to become the go-to man for the Indian team. His ability to get early breakthroughs for the team is one of the main reasons for India’s dominance.
In many ways, Siraj is Destiny’s Child, but he had a few farishtays to help him fulfill his dream of playing for India. Although fond of cricket, Siraj only played with a real cricket ball in 2015. Until then, he played with a tennis ball. Given a break by Mohd Mahboob Ahmed of Charminar Cricket Club in the HCA league, Siraj, who didn’t even have proper cricket shoes to play, showed immense courage to catch the attention of cricket officials.
“His mother, who worked at our house as a maid, had pestered me to check out Siraj’s bowling alley. But when I first saw him at nets, he looked quite ordinary. I told his mother that he will have to work hard and perform to get a break,” former Hyderabad fly-half Abdul Azeem told ToI on Monday.
“But seeing him grow into such a phenomenal bowler is nothing short of a miracle. There’s no mainstream explanation for it. He seems destined for it and always had luck on his side,” said Azeem, who was the coach when Siraj made his Ranji Trophy debut for Hyderabad.
A still modest Azeem said Siraj got the break thanks to former Hyderabad captain P Akshath Reddy. “It was Akshath who said that Siraj should be included in Hyderabad squad for the knockout game against Services in 2015. (GH) Vihari also supported him and I spoke to Arshad about it ( Ayub), who was the president of HCA. He accepted and Siraj was able to debut in this game,” Azeem added.
Although it was an ordinary debut, luck was on Siraj’s side as Hyderabad signed former India player Bharat Arun as their manager next season. Hyderabad’s middle pacers – Siraj, M Ravi Kiran and CV Milind – have thrived under Arun with Siraj claiming 41 wickets in 9 games this season which earned him an IPL contract. “Being a fast bowler, Arun was a big help in shaping Siraj and turning him into a match winner. To Siraj’s credit, he was a quick learner and hard worker,” Azeem said.
“When he was playing for Hyderabad U-23 team he was at the academy. He was quite quick and I was impressed with his ability. I knew he was destined for great things in life,” said former Indian player MV Narasimha Raowho was the director of the HCA academy.
Months later, Siraj broke into Indian team T20I against New Zealand. He made his ODI debut against Australia in Adelaide on January 15, 2019 and his Test debut against Australia at the MCG in December 2020. For Siraj’s good luck, his mentor Arun was brought in as a bowling coach of the Indian team. Arun’s guidance and former Indian skipper Virat Kohli’s faith in him helped Siraj flourish as a fast bowler.
Siraj was thought to be good at red ball cricket and he proved it by taking 46 wickets in 15 Tests with an average of 30.39. But he has surprised everyone with his white ball skills over the past year. Siraj, who went less to the wicket in his first ODI game and was out of the squad for three years, made a comeback in the match against West Indies in Ahmedabad on February 6, 2022 and there was no backtrack. He played 15 games last year and had 24 kills.
Siraj started 2023 with a bang by taking 9 wickets in the ODI three-game series against Sri Lanka and with the New Zealand and Australian series Destiny’s Child looking to enhance their ‘killer’ reputation.
In many ways, Siraj is Destiny’s Child, but he had a few farishtays to help him fulfill his dream of playing for India. Although fond of cricket, Siraj only played with a real cricket ball in 2015. Until then, he played with a tennis ball. Given a break by Mohd Mahboob Ahmed of Charminar Cricket Club in the HCA league, Siraj, who didn’t even have proper cricket shoes to play, showed immense courage to catch the attention of cricket officials.
“His mother, who worked at our house as a maid, had pestered me to check out Siraj’s bowling alley. But when I first saw him at nets, he looked quite ordinary. I told his mother that he will have to work hard and perform to get a break,” former Hyderabad fly-half Abdul Azeem told ToI on Monday.
“But seeing him grow into such a phenomenal bowler is nothing short of a miracle. There’s no mainstream explanation for it. He seems destined for it and always had luck on his side,” said Azeem, who was the coach when Siraj made his Ranji Trophy debut for Hyderabad.
A still modest Azeem said Siraj got the break thanks to former Hyderabad captain P Akshath Reddy. “It was Akshath who said that Siraj should be included in Hyderabad squad for the knockout game against Services in 2015. (GH) Vihari also supported him and I spoke to Arshad about it ( Ayub), who was the president of HCA. He accepted and Siraj was able to debut in this game,” Azeem added.
Although it was an ordinary debut, luck was on Siraj’s side as Hyderabad signed former India player Bharat Arun as their manager next season. Hyderabad’s middle pacers – Siraj, M Ravi Kiran and CV Milind – have thrived under Arun with Siraj claiming 41 wickets in 9 games this season which earned him an IPL contract. “Being a fast bowler, Arun was a big help in shaping Siraj and turning him into a match winner. To Siraj’s credit, he was a quick learner and hard worker,” Azeem said.
“When he was playing for Hyderabad U-23 team he was at the academy. He was quite quick and I was impressed with his ability. I knew he was destined for great things in life,” said former Indian player MV Narasimha Raowho was the director of the HCA academy.
Months later, Siraj broke into Indian team T20I against New Zealand. He made his ODI debut against Australia in Adelaide on January 15, 2019 and his Test debut against Australia at the MCG in December 2020. For Siraj’s good luck, his mentor Arun was brought in as a bowling coach of the Indian team. Arun’s guidance and former Indian skipper Virat Kohli’s faith in him helped Siraj flourish as a fast bowler.
Siraj was thought to be good at red ball cricket and he proved it by taking 46 wickets in 15 Tests with an average of 30.39. But he has surprised everyone with his white ball skills over the past year. Siraj, who went less to the wicket in his first ODI game and was out of the squad for three years, made a comeback in the match against West Indies in Ahmedabad on February 6, 2022 and there was no backtrack. He played 15 games last year and had 24 kills.
Siraj started 2023 with a bang by taking 9 wickets in the ODI three-game series against Sri Lanka and with the New Zealand and Australian series Destiny’s Child looking to enhance their ‘killer’ reputation.
