Venue — Mulapadu Cricket Complex (near Vijayawada). Minutes after India-A drubbed New Zealand-A in the two-match, four-day Test series on this October 3, chairman of national selection panel M.S.K. Prasad and India-A coach Rahul Dravid made pacer Mohammed Siraj bowl for a while in the middle to have a closer look.
Now, in retrospect, the selection of Siraj on Monday to the Indian team for the T-20 internationals against New Zealand from November 1 is a reminder of that faith.
Meteoric rise
By all means, it has been a meteoric rise — virtually from nowhere to walking into the Indian team! Not many were even aware of this young, talented fast bowler till former Hyderabad pacer Jyothi Prasad (then chairman of Hyderabad selection panel) spotted him and started encouraging him more than two seasons ago.
And, since then, Siraj has never really looked back. Not even at the past which was full of sacrifices by his parents — father Mohd Ghouse was an auto driver and mother Shabana Begum. It was their son who called them up from Shivamogga in Karnataka to break the news of his selection Not surprisingly, his father is elated. “This is the biggest and happiest moment of our life. What more one can ask than his son playing for the country?” he exclaimed. “I pray to Allah that Siraj lives up to the expectations and has a long career,” he said.
Talent shows
In a way, Siraj’s success story is a splendid reminder to all those aspiring young talent that if one has the talent , backed by performances and a little bit of luck, there is always a possibility of making it big — though the chances are very, very limited. “We always had this belief for he was unplayable in the early days itself, his bowling was of a different level for sure,” recalls his elder brother Mohd Ismail. “So, we were always optimistic of his growth but not this kind of sudden transformation in his career,” he said.
Hard work
The unmistakable message from Siraj’s fabulous journey — from the by-lanes of First Lancer near Mehdipatnam to the Indian team — that there is no short-cut route to success. And, not surprisingly, the entire family is longing to watch at least one match when Siraj plays for India against New Zealand.
