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Mohammed Siraj talked about how he initially struggled to process the news of his exclusion from the Indian team for the Champions Trophy. Siraj, who was included in the teams for the 2023 ODI World Cup and the 2024 T20 World Cup, was left out of the tournament squad because the Indian team's management chose to use five spinners as they played all of their games in Dubai.
Mohammed Siraj on Champions Trophy snub
Siraj was selected as a non-traveling reserve for the competition, but wasn't required in the end as India won the tournament. The bowler stated that playing for India gives him a lot of confidence before making his Gujarat Titans debut. Siraj claimed to have known that the Indian team management and Rohit Sharma would have called for the squad's betterment.
"When you play for the country, you get a lot of confidence. As an international player you always want to play in an ICC event. At the beginning, I couldn't digest that I wasn't part of the squad. Rohit bhai also does what is best for the team and that's why he did it. He has so much experience and knew that pacers won't be of much use on that track. He knew that spinners will be for useful and that's why they decided to snub me," said Siraj.
Siraj claimed to have improved his bowling and fitness during the Champions Trophy break. The pacer claimed that because he was playing for so long, he was unaware of his mistakes. The most important thing, according to Siraj, was watching India ultimately win the Champions Trophy.
"For a long time, I was playing continiously. So I used the break to work on my fitness and bowling. When you're playing you don't realise the mistakes you make. So it was a good break and we won the Champions Trophy as well. That was the biggest thing," said Siraj.
Siraj, who will be expected to return in action with the upcoming clash between Gujarat Titans and Punjab kings, could also make his much-awaited comeback with the Indian team in the England tour following IPL 2025.
