Mohammed Siraj was all set to switch off from cricket. With a short break planned after playing a couple of Ranji Trophy matches for Hyderabad, the fast bowler had his eyes on Spain, where he intended to watch his favourite football club Real Madrid take on Real Sociedad before the start of Ramzan.
Then his phone buzzed. On the other end was India captain Suryakumar Yadav.
“Two days ago, Surya bhai told me, ‘Miaan, bags pack kar aur aaja (Pack your bags and come to Mumbai),’” Siraj recalled with a smile after India’s 29-run win over the USA in their T20 World Cup opener. “I told him, ‘Bhai, mazaak mat karo, yeh hone wala nahi hai (Don’t joke, this isn’t going to happen).’ But he said, ‘Main sach keh raha hoon, ready ho ja (I’m serious, get ready).’”
Soon after, selector Pragyan Ojha called to confirm the news. “Whatever the Almighty has written, no one can change that,” an elated Siraj said.
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The call-up came completely out of the blue for the pacer, who admitted he never thought he was in India’s plans for the World Cup. In fact, when strength and conditioning coach Adrian Le Roux had earlier asked about his plans, Siraj had replied honestly: “Don’t message me right now. I’ve played two four-day games and need rest. I’ll see what to do after that.”
Instead of a football trip to Madrid, Siraj found himself boarding a flight for national duty.
“It felt like a dream when I was on the flight,” Siraj said. “I had not thought about playing in the World Cup at all. For the last one year, the planning was for others. Since I hadn’t played T20Is, I understood I wouldn’t be part of it.”
But cricket, as always, had other plans. Drafted in at the last moment, Siraj made an immediate impact, emerging as India’s standout bowler with three wickets against the USA. His sudden return summed up the unpredictability of sport and life.
As his teammate Rinku Singh often writes on social media: “God’s plan, baby.”
