Did MS Dhoni save Mohammed Siraj's career after an unsuccessful IPL 2019?
Mohammed Siraj has risen through the ranks of late as a decent Indian pacer. However, he feared his career was over after a poor IPL 2019 before MS Dhoni saved it.
FollowIndian pacer Mohammed Siraj has become one of the prominent fast bowlers in the side of late, especially in Tests, as he continues to evolve and make a severe impact, be it India or overseas. However, it was not the same three years ago, especially after the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019. He even feared the end of his career before legendary former Indian skipper MS Dhoni saved it.
In IPL 2019, Siraj claimed seven wickets in nine matches at an economy of 9.55, playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). It was against former champion Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) that he was punched for five sixes and gave away 36 runs in just 2.2 overs, including a couple of beamers, as then skipper Virat Kohli was forced to take him off. Also, after RCB lost the opening six games of the season and finished at the bottom, Siraj feared the worst.
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Speaking in an RCB podcast, Siraj recalled, "After I bowled the two beamers vs KKR, people began to tell me to quit cricket and go back and drive auto-rickshaw with my father. However, people overlooked the struggles behind it. But, when I recall the first time I was selected, I remember how Mahi bhai (Dhoni) urged me not to listen to what the common people and the outside world had to say or thought about me."
" He further briefed me, 'People will praise you upon performing, while they won't if you underperform. So, you should not take them seriously at all.' Ironically, the people who trolled me back at the time now say, 'you're the best bowler bhai'. So, I am aware of it, and I don't need anybody's opinion. I'm the same Siraj I was.", he further identified.
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Siraj's breakthrough season came after IPL 2020, during the tour of Australia. Before the trip, he suffered a personal tragedy as he lost his father. But, with quarantine rules in place due to COVID, he decided to travel Down Under with the team and was highly successful. He revealed that he had stopped talking to his father before the tour, as both kept crying, making Siraj feel helpless.
"The last time he spoke to me, he requested me to focus on the sport and playing for the nation, besides fulfilling my dream by making the country proud. That was the prime reason I chose to stay back with the team. Although I had given a thought to leave the team on the day he passed, it was his words that kept reminding me and made me do otherwise," he concluded.
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