Mohammed Siraj revealed how Ravi Shastri helped him when he was shattered and depressed on the tour of Australia.
Siraj starred for the Indian team on the historic tour of Australia last year. But the 28-year old was going through a difficult phase due to the passing of his father. Recently, he has opened up about those difficult times and the support he received, especially from the then head coach Ravi Shastri.
The right arm pacer made his debut at Melbourne Cricket Ground and was superb throughout the series. His best came at the Gabba, where he picked a five-wicket haul in India’s historic victory to claim the series by 2-1. Siraj revealed that Shastri had put an arm around him when he needed it the most and backed him to come good.
“When my dad passed away, Ravi sir supported me. He came up to me and said ‘see Miyan, your dad would have wanted you to take five wickets on this tour. I was very emotional, depressed and shattered. I couldn’t understand what was going on. We were under hard quarantine,”
he said on Backstage with Boria.
Siraj lost his father Mohammed Ghaus to a prolonged lung ailment in November 2020. The India pacer could not even return home to attend his funeral due to the hard quarantine rules put in place amidst Covid-19 pandemic.
“I couldn’t figure what to do – should I fly back home or stay here and fulfill dad’s dream. Then I thought that had I gone back, I would have had to undergo quarantine there as well. So I thought it would be better to continue being in Australia and fulfil my father’s dream,”
Siraj added.
The player has seen an immense rise in his career since his debut, becoming one of the first choice pacers in India’s Test squad. In his 12 Test matches, he has registered 36 wickets at 29.64 apiece. In the limited overs cricket, Siraj has played nine games and has picked 10 scalps.
Siraj is an integral part of his Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore, who had retained him ahead of the 2022 mega auction. The right arm pacer has 50 wickets to his name from 50 IPL appearances at an economy of 8.39. His numbers in recent times have been even better, and is set to lead the attack in the upcoming edition.
