Mohammed Siraj displayed exceptional bowling chops at the Asia Cup 2023 final, which led to India defeating Sri Lanka by a whopping 10 wickets in Colombo and lifting the Asia Cup trophy. It is India’s 8th Asia Cup title.
Siraj's 6/21 on Sunday were the best figures for a fast bowler in the Asia Cup, with the previous best belonging to Aaqib Javed's 5/19 against India at Sharjah in 1995. With this, he also became the first Indian cricketer to take 4 wickets in an over.
Siraj's rise to a star bowler is nothing less thna a fairytale. He's the son of a rickshaw puller who braved all the odds to make it to the Indian cricket team.
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During an episode of ‘Breakfast with Champions’ with Gaurav Kapur, Siraj recalled his tough journey from being born in Hyderabad to becoming a part of the Indian cricket team.
Mohammed Siraj was born into an impoverished family in Hyderabad. His father worked as an auto-rickshaw driver while his mother used to clean houses. Siraj’s father wanted him to become an engineer and get a decent-paying job .
Siraj, whose sporting career, began with ‘gully’ cricket was later spotted by some cricket coaches who motivated him to play for state-level matches. After a tough selection process, Siraj started playing cricket leagues in Hyderabad. Since he had to travel distances to play matches, he started using a rickety motorcycle kept in his house.
Siraj further said on ‘Breakfast with Champions’, “My brother used to get Rs 100 as his pocket money and he used he used to give me Rs 70 every day, of which Rs 40 went towards petrol for the bike." After months of playing, Siraj earned Rs 500.
Siraj used to play with a tennis ball in the villages. He was forced to play cricket while wearing slippers as he had no money to buy shoes. Due to his great performance in the local matches, he got an offer to play in a tournament. This is when he was offered shoes attached with spikes for the first time in his life.
Siraj’s impressive performances in tennis-ball cricket led to his rapid inclusion in the Hyderabad side. But he contracted dengue during an important U23 game. He did not give up and left the hospital to play the match. Surprisingly, he excelled in batting, bowling, and fielding.
Even after such a splendid performance right in his early days as a cricketer, Siraj remains grounded. On Sunday, he announced that he would donate his prize money for the Player of the Tournament award (approximately $5,000) to the ground staff in Colombo. His gesture has been praised by many
Siraj lost his father Mohammed Ghaus while he was playing as part of India's tour in Australia in 2020. In one of the interviews, he revealed how he could not attend his final rites due to quarantine restrictions. Siraj went on to represent Team India. He further recalled crying by himself in the dressing room.
- First-class debut in 2015-16 Ranji trophy tournament
- Twenty20 debut in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy
- Highest-wicket taker in 2016-17 Ranji Trophy
- Sunrisers Hyderabad bought him for IPL 2017, in 2018 he joined Royal Challengers Bangalore
- In IPL 2020, he became first bowler in IPL to bowl back-to-back maiden overs in a single match
- In 2023, Siraj became No. 1 ODI bowler in ICC ODI Rankings for Bowlers