Mohammed Siraj’s IPL Nightmare

Last year, Mohammed Siraj was the star bowler of the IPL. He dominated the first six overs of innings, taking wickets and barely giving away any runs. This season, however, things have gone terribly wrong for Siraj.

 

In 2023, Siraj was the second-highest wicket-taker in the powerplay, just behind Mohammed Shami. He was so good that his bowling average was just under 6 runs per over – an exceptional feat for a fast bowler!

 

Fast forward to 2024, Siraj has become the worst new-ball bowler in the entire league. In his first six games, he’s leaked a massive amount of runs (over 12 runs per over) and been hit for a whopping 10 sixes – the most by any bowler!

 

Compared to other bowlers bowling in the powerplay, Siraj has been incredibly expensive. In fact, his economy rate is at least 2 runs per over worse than any other bowler who’s bowled more than 8 overs.

 

Even though he’s giving away a lot of runs, Siraj isn’t taking wickets to compensate. His bowling average in the powerplay is the worst in the league, meaning he’s not getting batsmen out.

 

Surprisingly, Siraj has actually bowled well in the last few overs of the innings (death overs). However, the damage done early on is often too much for his team, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), to recover from.

 

Siraj’s poor performance puts his selection for the upcoming T20 World Cup in jeopardy. With the team selection approaching, Siraj needs a major turnaround to convince the selectors.

 

There’s still a long way to go in the IPL season, but Siraj will need a dramatic improvement if he wants to save both RCB’s season and his chances of playing in the World Cup.