Mohammed Siraj has always been a man of grit, a fast bowler who doesn’t bowl just spells of deliverances, but rather with his soul. And yet, for all of his fire and consistency, the Hyderabad pacer has been watching India from the sidelines while she has participated in two major white-ball tournaments this year.
Despite being India’s highest wicket-taker over the five-match Test series against England, Siraj was not in the Asia Cup 2025 squad, just as he was left out earlier for the Champions Trophy in Dubai. The speedster has finally talked about what really transpired behind the scenes.
Speaking openly to Express Sports, Siraj said that there were no hard feelings about the exclusions but clarity and communication were maintained by skipper Rohit Sharma and the management.
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“I am 200 percent confident of doing well in all three formats if given a chance. When we went for the Champions Trophy in Dubai, there was much heat there, and we required more spinners, that’s why I was not picked. Rohit bhai had told me then that most of the bowling would be done by spinners as he did not want me go there and just sit on the bench, he told me to spend time with my family, practise, and work on my fitness.”
Players are seldom sanguine when being dropped, but it was Siraj’s response that really struck with its rare maturity. He chose to see the bigger picture instead of going down in despair.
“The Asia Cup was right after we had returned from the five Tests in England, so it was an opportunity to rest a bit,” he added, naming workload first and team balance second.
For Siraj, if a couple of exclusions had been thought to kill his rage, his return to action in Ahmedabad against the West Indies in the first Test put a stop to that. Back in whites, back into rhythm, he made carnage of the Caribbean line-up with a venomous spell.
The right-arm pacer picked 7 wickets in the match: 4 in the first innings and 3 in the second, helping India cruise to an innings-and-140-run win at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
The second Test in Delhi starting October 10 begins now for Siraj. If anything, Ahmedabad has shown that the man is striving to carry on with his purple patch.
