Mohammed Siraj

Son of an autorickshaw driver, Mohammed Siraj, began playing tennis-ball cricket and held the leather ball for the first time at the age of 19, in 2015. 

After playing in an U-23 tournament, the fast bowler was included in Hyderabad's state team in 2015-16. However, he could play a single game in his debut season. In 2016, he was a net bowler for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), and assistant coach Bharat Arun saw his ability and helped him work on his raw pace. 

In 2016-17, Arun was made Hyderabad’s coach, and Siraj got another opportunity to polish his skills under Arun's guidance, whom he already met in the RCB camp. The pacer scalped an impressive 41 wickets in nine matches. He attributed his success to coach Arun by calling him an ‘Angel’. 

After his success in the domestic circuit, Siraj bagged an IPL contract of a massive INR 2.6 crore with Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2017 season. He played his first game against Delhi Capitals and ended the season with 10 wickets from six outings. 

The right-arm fast bowler made his T20I debut against New Zealand in 2017.

Siraj became the highest wicket-taker (23) in the 2017-18 Vijay Hazare Trophy and then was purchased by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) for INR 2.20 crores at the 2018 IPL auction. He played 11 games for RCB and took 11 wickets. 

In 2019, Siraj made his ODI debut against Australia but he went wicketless. Siraj had an ordinary tournament during the 2019 IPL season where he could just snap 7 wickets in 10 matches and also leaked runs at an economy of around 10. 

In the 2020 IPL 2020, Siraj grabbed 11 wickets in nine matches. 

After an exceptional IPL, the fast bowler was called up for the Test series against Australia, and it became a series to remember for him. Ahead of the Test series, Siraj lost his father but decided to stay with the team to achieve his father’s dream of him playing Test cricket. The pacer made his Test debut at the iconic MCG. 

Siraj took his maiden fifer at The Gabba and played a big role in India’s second consecutive series victory Down Under (first came during the 2018-19 season). 

In February 2021, Siraj was retained by RCB for the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League. 

Siraj has been RCB’s premier pace bowler in the previous three seasons, with his best coming in 2023, when he took 19 wickets in 14 matches.

Siraj was the standby player for India in the 2022 T20 World Cup. He played his first ICC tournament in 2023, getting selected for the ODI World Cup.

In the India-Sri Lanka Asia Cup 2023 final, Siraj recorded 6/21, the fifth-best by an Indian bowler in ODI cricket. Siraj completed his five-wicket haul in just 16 deliveries as India won the summit clash comprehensively.

The ODI World Cup 2023 helped Siraj enhance his stature as he snared 14 wickets in 11 innings.

Siraj’s rise continued post the World Cup. In a Test between India-South Africa at Newlands, Cape Town, he claimed his best Test figures of 6/15 (in an innings).

(As of March 2024)