Senior Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj has revealed that he initially thought captain Suryakumar Yadav was pulling his leg when he got the call that he would be drafted into India’s 2026 Men’s World T20 squad as a replacement for Harshit Rana. Siraj was named in the updated squad a day before the start of the tournament after Rana was ruled out due to injury, prompting the BCCI to turn to the experienced fast bowler to bolster the pace attack along with Arshdeep Singh and Jasprit Bumrah.
India’s plans were further disrupted on the eve of their tournament opener when Bumrah was sidelined due to illness. This development opened the door for Siraj, who joined the unit late on Friday night and was thrust straight into action. Siraj, playing his first T20I since July 2024, bowled a probing opening spell, bowling a full-length reminiscent of red-ball cricket. He struck twice early and finished with figures of 3 for 29 from four overs. With the USA reduced to 13 for 3 in the fourth over, the chase never fully recovered.
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“Two days before the match, Surya bhai called me. He said, ‘Miya, get ready, pack your bags and come,'” Siraj told Star Sports after the match. “I told him, ‘Surya bhai, don’t joke now. You joke a lot, but not about anything like this.’ He said: ‘I mean it. Pack your bags and come.’ Later Oja bhai also called me and told me to be ready. That’s when it really sunk in.”
Siraj’s incisive first spell combined with Suryakumar’s usual counter-attack with the bat boosted the defending champions India’s 29-run win over the United States on Saturday 7 February despite a dramatic top-order collapse in their opening match of the tournament.
“Playing the World Cup is everyone’s dream,” added Siraj. “What is written by God happens, but you also have to work hard. If you work honestly, the results will come from somewhere or other. You saw up close how much effort goes into it.”
From 13 to 3, the USA put together a few partnerships but never really got back on track. Milind Kumar (34), Sanjay Krishnamurthi (37) and Shubham Ranjane (37) offered resistance with useful contributions, though they only reduced the margin of defeat.
Neither batsman was able to take control, and once Varun Chakravarthy (1/24) and Axar Patel (2/24) made their mark after the powerplay, the contest shifted further away from the USA. The spin duo conceded just 48 runs and claimed three wickets in eight overs.
Earlier, Suryakumar stood tall in a 49-ball innings and single-handedly pulled India out of trouble after a dramatic collapse saw them move to 77 for six in the 13th over. South African-born Shadley van Schalkwyk returned figures of 4-0-25-4 as India’s vaunted batting line-up, apart from their captain, endured a torrid run and narrowly avoided being bowled out for a sub-par total.
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Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
February 7, 2026
