Picture Credit: Twitter
Mohammed Siraj, one of the premier fast bowlers in Indian cricket currently, has been through a lot of turmoil in life in the past few years. On November 20, 2020, when his father Mohammed Ghaus died, the Hyderabad-born pacer was in Australia, in midst of quarantine, getting ready to play a full-fledged tour for Team India.
Recently, in a chat with one of the fantasy sports platform, titled #LockerRoomStories, Siraj talked at length about what had transpired in his personal and professional life, just before and after his father’s death. He also revealed an inspiring conversation with his mother, which led him to focus solely on the task at hand rather than worrying about anything else in his life.
The 29-year-old RCB cricketer was quoted as saying to the online fantasy platform, “When the IPL was about to end (in November 2020), my dad’s health deteriorated and he was hospitalised. Nobody informed me about it because I was playing matches at that time and they did not want me to worry.”
Siraj then shared the moment he found out about his father’s hospitalisation and shortly afterwards, his death, while he was getting ready to play for Team India Down Under. He said, “Later, I went to Australia, I found out that my dad was hospitalised. And while I was in quarantine in Australia, I got to know that my father had passed away. I could not even go home and there was no way.”
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Once the father of Mohammed Siraj had died, he talked about not being in a good frame of mind, but his mother’s inspiring words helped him get through the tough times and focus on playing for India. “Mentally I was disturbed since I could not even go back home. I spoke with my mom and she said, ‘Look, son, it was your father’s dream for you to represent the country and to make India proud.’ And during that time, I really praised my mom for being so strong and expressing the women’s power. Hats off to my mom,” remarked Siraj.
“I stayed there (in Australia) and I was clueless about whether I was going to play the Test match. I was just there for that chance and if I got to play, I would give my 100 percent. And when I do get that chance, I will make my father’s dream come true. That is all I had on my mind,” detailed Mohammed Siraj, who made his Test debut for India against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on December 26, 2020.
