The right-arm pacer has featured in 16 T20Is so far.
After India’s squad for the Asia Cup 2025 was declared, there was a huge backlash from the fans. The likes of Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal were not included in the 15-member squad. Additionally, Mohammed Siraj, who played in the Asia Cup 2023, was also not selected for the tourney in the UAE. The pacer’s last T20I came in the ICC World Cup 2024.
Siraj was a part of the playing XI in the Asia Cup 2023. He did not just take part, but played a huge role in India’s title win. Now 31 years old, he rocked the Sri Lankans in the Final of the tournament, picking a six-wicket haul in no time. As a result, India lifted the title after chasing the score without losing a wicket.
Despite shining for India in the recent Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, Siraj couldn’t find a place in the Asia Cup 2025 squad. The Gujarat Titans (GT) bowler was not a part of India’s ICC Champions Trophy 2025 squad as well.
Going back to the match centre, India captain Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and elected to field first.
India: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (w), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, and Varun Chakaravarthy.
United Arab Emirates: Muhammad Waseem (c), Alishan Sharafu, Muhammad Zohaib, Rahul Chopra (w), Asif Khan, Harshit Kaushik, Haider Ali, Dhruv Parashar, Muhammad Rohid Khan, Junaid Siddique, and Simranjeet Singh.
After the squad declaration for the Champions Trophy earlier this year, skipper Rohit Sharma explained Siraj’s exclusion in the press conference. He said that with the team combination that they had in mind, Siraj would not be able to bowl with the new ball. To add to that, he is not the best when it comes to death bowling.
Death bowling is a skill which Siraj has yet to master in his career. During his initial years with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), he was often taken to the cleaners in the death overs.
Siraj has featured in 16 T20Is for India and has been able to scalp only 14 wickets. He holds an economy of almost eight, with the best figures of 4/17. Having said that, he has transformed into a beast in red-ball cricket and has quickly become India’s most reliable Test bowler. But, he will have to put in some hard yards to revive his white-ball career.
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Very balanced, to say the least. India have picked Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana as the pacers for the tournament. The Indians are expected to start with two seamers, with Hardik Pandya filling in as the third seaming option.
Arshdeep has been brilliant at the death, with his immaculate yorkers, and India will hope the same from him in the tournament. Rana or Hardik might take the new ball, especially in Bumrah’s absence.
On wickets in the UAE, the spinners will offer more assistance. India have stacked up a formidable combination. Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, and Axar Patel are clear favourites to start, and it will have to be seen how skipper Suryakumar Yadav manages his bowlers.
As far as the absence of Mohammed Siraj is concerned, it would not hurt India. However, he will have to make sure he improves his variations, which can make him a formidable force at the back end of the innings. He took the second-most wickets of his IPL career during his recent stint with GT. He managed 16 wickets this season, three behind his 2023 season.
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