Excited to share space with Dhoni, Kohli in Indian dressing room: Mohammad Siraj

Hyderabad: Hyderabad fast bowler Mohammad Siraj said that he never thought in his dream that he would play for India. “Today when I will shortly sit in the Indian dressing room, it will be a dream come true for me. I’m excited to meet the legends like (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni and (Virat) captain Kohli. It will be a huge moment for me. Sitting in the Indian dressing room itself will be a big honour for me,’’ said Siraj while talking to N Jagannath Das from Shimoga where he is playing the Group A Ranji Trophy league match against Karnataka that starts from Tuesday.

I was in the practice session when one of the Karnataka players came and informed me that I have been selected to the Indian for the T20 series against New Zealand. I was thrilled and excited when I heard the news.

My parents are very happy that I will be playing for the country. We have shifted to a bigger house in Towli Chowki from a small house Khazanagar in Banjara Hills. My father is happy and he is not plying the autorickshaw any more

It is all happening now since one year. I have begun to play big-time cricket. I have been able to take wickets and my performances have been very good. I did very well in Ranji



Trophy where I took 43 wickets and I got a chance to play in IPL.

I learnt a lot from Bhuvaneshwar Kumar. He taught me how to bowl the `knuckle’ ball and other variations. Skipper David Warner was pretty happy with my performance. He said my action was similar to Jasprit Bumrah. He told me to concentrate on the basics.

I’m very happy that we got a very good coach in Arun Kumar last season for Hyderabad. Thanks to his coaching, I could get 43 wickets. He played a big role in making me a more incisive bowler. I could get my yorkers and the in-swingers right. It made me feel good. The coach never told me to sacrifice my pace. He always encouraged us and he always told made that I have the potential to play the next level.

While playing for India A teams, I could learn the intricacies of fast bowling. I felt very nice to bowl on the bouncy wickets of South Africa during the India A tour. Rahul Dravid as a coach was a big help to me.

I worked very hard to come to this level. It needs a lot of sacrifice and fitness is the key to any success.