Mohammed Siraj drives straight from airport to pay last respects to late father
The last few months have been surreal for India’s Mohammed Siraj. In November, he was in Australia preparing for the Border-Gavaskar Test series when he heard the devastating news of the passing away of his father, Mohammed Ghouse. Ghouse was 53 and passed away after battling with a lung ailment.
Siraj received an offer from the BCCI to return home to be with his bereaved family but he decided to stay back. What followed thereafter was nothing less than a fairytale. In the last couple of months, Siraj went from being India’s backup bowler to the leader of the pace attack as he helped India win a monumental Test series Down Under.
After warming the bench in the first Test, Siraj made his debut in the second Test following a series-ending injury to Mohammed Shami. And Siraj did not look back after that. He picked up five wickets on debut, helping India thrash Australia by eight wickets at the MCG. The right-arm pacer picked up two in the following Test, before taking six including a five-wicket haul in the second innings of the fourth Test.
Siraj’s spell played a crucial role in India’s historic series-clinching triumph at the Gabba where they chased down 328 in the fourth innings. His performance came when India were in desperate need of a pace-bowling leader in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami. The 26-year-old finished as India’s highest wicket-taker with 13 wickets.
Siraj’s tribute to late father
While Siraj has been receiving accolades and praise from all over for his stunning show in Australia, the pacer was well aware of the personal loss he had suffered. The pacer drove straight from the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Shamshabad to the graveyard in Khairtabad to pay his last respect to his departed father.
Speaking about the same to Sports Today, Siraj said:
“I didn’t go home, directly. I went to the graveyard straight from the airport, I went there to sit with my dad for some time. I couldn’t speak to him but offered flowers to his grave. And then I came home. When I met my mom, she started crying.
“Then I tried to console her, telling her not to cry. It was a different feeling. After 6-7 months, her son had come home. Mom was always waiting for me to return. She was counting down how many days were left for me to return.”
Meanwhile, Siraj will be seen in action soon next month when India host England for a full-fledged series. He has been named in the Test squad for the first two Tests. The four-match series will start on February 5 in Chennai.
