'He is a guardian angel to me' - When Mohammed Siraj credited Bharat Arun for his success

Mohammed Siraj turned many heads with his splendid performances and has cemented his place on the Indian Test side. The Indian pacer has credited bowling coach Bharat Arun for his rise as a player. Siraj made his T20I debut for India in the year 2017. However, he played only three matches in the shortest format and then waited long to make it to the Test team.

In the ongoing Test series against England, Siraj yet again proved to be Virat Kohli’s go-to man. In the Lord’s Test, he provided crucial breakthroughs to the team by picking up wickets in quick succession. Siraj picked up four wickets in England’s second innings and helped India to restrict the hosts at 120 and secure a thrilling victory by 151 runs.

Siraj was spotted by Hyderabad coach Bharat Arun in the nets for Sunrisers Hyderabad and the latter eventually helped him to arm his talent better. Siraj asserted that the bowling coach gave him confidence and termed him as his guardian angel.

“Bharat Arun sir came into my life and things changed so much. He used to give me so much confidence that there is no limit to that. He used to back me a lot. He is a guardian angel to me. He used to tell me to not get tensed and that I would play for India, just keep working hard and don’t let your guard down,” Siraj had said in a video uploaded by RCB on their social media platforms during IPL 2020.

Mohammed Siraj’s transformation into a dependable Test bowler

Mohammed Siraj made his Test debut in Melbourne as Mohammed Shami missed the match owing to a finger injury. Things weren’t easy for the speedster as he had just dealt with the news of his father’s demise. India was hit with injury issues as many key names couldn’t play in the Test match against Australia.

Siraj exuded great character to lead the pace attack of Team India as he registered his maiden five-wicket haul against Australia in the second innings in the Brisbane Test. His five-wicket haul included the prized scalps of Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschagne which helped India to restrict Australia’s lead to 328.