He has scalped nine wickets in four matches of the IPL 2025 so far.
The former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop has lauded Gujarat Titans (GT) seamer Mohammed Siraj after his brilliant start in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. He compared Siraj’s powerplay stats from the two previous seasons with the current IPL edition so far and acknowledged his recent improvement.
“It was two seasons ago that Siraj got 20 wickets in the powerplay for RCB and only five last year, so his powerplay bowling had dropped off a bit. But he looks better now”, said Bishop to ESPN Cricinfo.
Notably, the 31-year-old joined the Gujarat Titans following his seven-year stint with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). GT acquired Siraj by spending a huge sum of INR 12.25 crore in the auction.
He has proved to be a valuable addition to their squad. The pacer has bagged nine wickets in just four matches so far. He also earned the Player of the Match award against his former franchise on April 2. Siraj dismissed big hitters like Phil Salt and Liam Livingstone alongside his former RCB teammate Devdutt Padikkal in that game, while maintaining an impressive economy rate of 4.75.
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According to the legendary Ian Bishop, Siraj has exceeded Mohammad Shami in white-ball cricket. Shami has not been in great form since his five-wicket haul against Bangladesh in India’s Champions Trophy opener. Considering Shami’s age, the GT pacer might be on track to make a comeback in the national squad if he continues to play in this rhythm, he opined.
“Since Shami got that five-wicket haul in the Champions Trophy, I don’t think we have seen that Shami again since then. He’s 34, nearly 35. If he (Siraj) continues to hit that length he is bowling and uses the seam, he looks, right now, as if he has jumped ahead of Mohammed Shami. If Siraj continues bowling as he has done in the last two games, I think he will offer slightly more across phases,” added the cricketer-turned-commentator.
With their seven-wicket win over the Sunrisers Hyderabad last night, Gujarat Titans have won three out of their four matches. Their only loss till now came against the Punjab Kings in their IPL 2025 opener.
After winning three games back-to-back, they will go head-to-head with the Rajasthan Royals. The match will take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on April 9.
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