‘Apne Baap Ke Saath ...’: Trolled For Poor IPL Performance, Mohammed Siraj Credits MS Dhoni’s Advice For Building Mental Strength

Mohammed Siraj’s journey from being mocked online to becoming one of India’s premier fast bowlers is a story of resilience and self-belief. Once ridiculed for his poor run in the IPL, the Hyderabad pacer used the words of MS Dhoni to build mental strength around himself.

The 31-year-old, now considered India’s second-best fast bowler after Jasprit Bumrah, knows better than most how fickle public emotion can be. For Indian fans, adoration and outrage often walk hand in hand, and Siraj has felt the pinch quite early in his cricket career.

Siraj reveals how trolling broke him

During an interview with The Indian Express, Siraj, who made both his IPL and T20I debuts in 2017, shared how the brutal trolling almost broke him, and how one inspirational moment from Dhoni changed his mindset forever.

“When things didn’t go my way during the IPL, I was trolled very badly,” Siraj admitted. “One day, fans say ‘there’s no bowler like Siraj,’ and the next, if I don’t perform, they say ‘jaa ke apne baap ke saath auto chalao’ (go ride the auto with your father). What’s the point of this?”

MS Dhoni's golden advice

For Siraj, the shift from being hailed as a hero to being mocked for his background was painful, but it was MS Dhoni’s advice that really brought his head back into the game.

“I remember when I joined the India team, MS Dhoni had told me, ‘Kisi ki baaton mein nahin aana. Jab tu acha karega, toh poori duniya tumhare saath rahegi, aur jab kharaab karega, yahi duniya tujhe gaali degi’ (Don’t pay attention to what others say. When you do well, everyone is with you. When you fail, they will be the first to abuse you).”

That piece of advice became a turning point. Siraj stopped seeking validation from the outside world and started drawing strength from his inner circle. “That’s when I decided, I don’t need outside praise. What my teammates and family think that’s what matters,” he said.

Siraj's journey to the top

Siraj’s rise to the international stage was anything but easy. Born into a modest family in Hyderabad, his father drove an auto-rickshaw while his mother worked tirelessly at home. For a young Siraj, cricket seemed like a distant dream but he persisted with his dream.

He played his first district-level match without ever having bowled with a leather ball. His life changed at the Vijay Anand ground, where his raw pace caught the attention of the owner of Charminar Cricket Club. That opportunity set off a chain of events that would rewrite his future.

As a net bowler before a match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad, Siraj bowled to Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, impressing then-India bowling coach Bharat Arun. Although he was later dropped from Hyderabad’s Ranji Trophy squad, destiny intervened when Arun returned as the state’s coach and sought him out again.

From there, Siraj’s hard work and consistency took over. The same boy once told to “ride the auto with his father” now stands tall as one of India’s fiercest fast bowlers