Mohammed Siraj was hurt over not being selected for India's ICC Champions Trophy 2025 squad, according to former cricketer Virender Sehwag, and the fire was visible on his face throughout the match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Siraj rocked the RCB top order with a spectacular spell of 3/19 in four overs. In a frightening new-ball performance, the right-arm seamer destroyed Philip Salt's stumps (14 off 13) and Devdutt Padikkal's (4 off 3). In addition, he came back in the 19th over to get rid of a settled Liam Livingstone (54 off 40).
Virender Sehwag on Mohammed Siraj
Sehwag claimed that Siraj was fired up following his Champions Trophy snub, which was evident on his face, after his amazing performance.
“He has that fire. And somewhere I feel he is hurt that he wasn't part of the Champions Trophy squad, and I saw that fire. That's what we expect from a young fast bowler. ‘Yeah, you didn’t pick me? Now I will show you.’ I hope he continues with the same intensity and makes a comeback in the Indian team,” said Sehwag on Cricbuzz.
The former opener also believed that he could have bowled his fourth over during the first stint, which could have resulted in a different outcome.
“He maintained his record with the new ball in Chinnaswamy. He gave away only 12 or 13 runs in the first three overs. He could've probably bowled the fourth over at the same time, too, he might have taken another wicket. He swings the new ball, and yesterday, he also got help from the wicket,” he added.
Earlier, in Gujarat's match against the Mumbai Indians, Siraj easily dismissed Rohit Sharma. After giving up 54 runs in four overs in their opening match against the Punjab Kings (PBKS), the right-arm seamer has recovered admirably. He then stunned the Mumbai Indians with a spell of 2/34, which featured Ryan Rickelton and Rohit's wickets. Siraj has taken five wickets in three games with an economy rate of 8.91 and an average of 21.40. On April 6, when Gujarat plays Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), he would be keen to maintain his form.