Siraj Mazda takes flight in fast lane, gets selected for India-New Zealand T20 series

HYDERABAD: Every time an Indian cricket squad is announced, fans and aficionados look for the inclusion of new faces. This time, Hyde­r­a­b­ad speedster Mohammed Siraj has passed the threshold that countless aspiring cricketers dream about. He was named in the Indian team for the T20I series against New Zealand, alongside another fresh face Shreyas Iyer. Although, the 22-year-old batsman has previously been in the Test squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. 

Siraj was going about his training ahead of the Hyderabad-Karnataka Ranji match in Shimoga when he got the news. “I was pleasantly surprised as I did not expect India call-up at all,” the 23-year-old pacer sa­id. “I think my performance in the IPL wo­uld have helped my case a lot. And rece­n­tly, I did considerably well for India A to­o.”The right-arm bowler made headlines when Sunrisers Hyderabad had bought his services for a windfall `2.6 crore in the 2017 IPL season. An emotional Siraj had said that the first thing he would like to do was buy a house for his family. “They have struggled a lot. Now, it is my turn to make them happy,” he told Express. 

His father, Mohammed Ghouse, was an auto-rickshaw driver and mother Shabana Begum a housemaid. Those days of hardship are long gone as the family has moved into a cosy house in the city. Siraj’s elder brother, Mohammed Ismail, said the family is on cloud nine since the good news re­ached them. “It feels like a festival. I kn­ew the senior selection committee was going to meet in Mumbai, but did not think that he will make it to the team. The joy is unexplainable. Ever since he got into IPL, our family’s living conditions have changed by huge proportions. Our father has stopped driving the auto-rickshaw,” Ismail said. 

The 2016-17 Ranji season saw Siraj em­erge as the season’s third-highest wicket-taker (41), which enabled his inclusion in the Rest of India, India A and SRH squads.“I feel that is the turning point in my career. The man-of-the-match award in IPL when I took four wickets is also one of the hi­ghlights I believe,” Siraj noted. He scal­ped 10 wickets in six IPL matches, and regularly clocked above 140 kmph, something that is bound to put any player in the selectors’ radar.
Sharing the dressing room with seasoned veterans like Ashish Nehra and Bhuvneshwar Kumar was a much-needed impetus. “Bhuvi bhai gave me a lot of tips on what to do next when a batsman has just hit you for a four or a six,” Siraj recalled. 

There isn’t much time to celebrate as he is away from his family preparing for the Ranji encounter. On his plans ahead, the level-headed Siraj said, “Right now, the Ranji match is my biggest priority. I will aim to perform to the best of my ability.” 

Siraj, last season had worked with Bharathi Arun, who was in-charge of Hyderabad before taking over as the bowling coach of the national side. “Arun taught me a lot on variations and how to use them and it was one of the break-through seasons for me and from there on, I have only kept improving,” he said.   
It has been quite a journey for Siraj who took up serious cricket only about four years ago. His mother’s scoldings for playing cricket all day have been replaced by pride! vishal@newindianexpress.com

Who is in...
For T20I series against NZ: Virat Kohli (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Shreyas Iyer, Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Ashish Nehra (one match), Mohammed Siraj.
For first two Tests vs SL: Virat Kohli (captain), M Vijay, KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.