Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) fans need no reminding of two things. First, the seemingly harmless slogan they once borrowed from Bengaluru FC, which now feels embarrassing. Second, a list of players they let go of only to watch them flourish elsewhere and, at times, haunt them.
KL Rahul, Travis Head, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shane Watson, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube - enough heartbreaks? On Wednesday night, another name was added in bold to that illustrious list - Mohammed Siraj, the one they let go of before the IPL 2025 mega auction.
Siraj now plays for Gujarat Titans (GT) but RCB was his IPL home for seven seasons, where he rose from a rookie to their pace spearhead. Yet, being overlooked in favour of Yash Dayal - an uncapped signing - for retention must have stung, especially after finishing as their joint-highest wicket-taker in 2024. He claimed 15 wickets in 14 games, though his economy rate, at 9.18, was on the higher side.
At the time, the rumblings within the camp pointed to Siraj's underwhelming record at the Chinnaswamy, and that his prolific years with the franchise had come when the IPL moved to the UAE during the Covid years. A look at his record, however, suggests there's very little to choose from. His economy for RCB at the Chinnaswamy (8.81) was only marginally higher than elsewhere (8.53), while his average at home was significantly better (26.84 as opposed to 33.54 away).
How poetic, then, that one of his best IPL spells - 3 for 19 off four overs, a fine follow-up to the one against Mumbai Indians in Ahmedabad last week - came at the very ground where he was once deemed to have fallen short. His execution was just as impressive as his pace and zip on a surface that, as RCB coach Andy Flower noted, "wasn't a typical Chinnaswamy pitch".
The evening began with warmth - plenty of bonhomie and backslaps with former team-mates. But the competitive fire took over quickly, igniting further when Virat Kohli elegantly drove him through extra cover for a boundary off his second ball.
The Chinnaswamy erupts at the slightest spark when RCB play, and it takes something extraordinary to silence it - and that's exactly what Siraj did. After sending Devdutt Padikkal's stumps cartwheeling, he sprinted the length of the pitch before unleashing his trademark Cristiano Ronaldo celebration. The silence in the stadium that followed was telling.
"I was a little emotional, because I played here for seven years in the red jersey," Siraj said later, after being named Player of the Match. "Now it's a different colour. I was a little nervous and a little emotional, too. But as soon as I got the ball in my hand, I was full on."
Siraj's full-on avatar truly sparked life into the GT camp when he dismissed the in-form Phil Salt. Siraj should have had him in the very first over when he edged a pull but Jos Buttler put it down. It seemed Siraj and GT had done their homework: In the IPL, Salt strikes significantly better (227.36) against full deliveries than he does against deliveries bowled on a good length or just short of it (146.64).
GT's plan was evident from the outset when Salt mistimed a pull on the very first ball, the delivery from Siraj thudding near his bat sticker. The struggle against those lengths nearly led to Salt's downfall. He was on 7 off ten when he had a mix-up with Rajat Patidar as he attempted a tight single to get off strike. But Siraj, despite all three stumps in sight, missed the direct hit at the non-striker's end.
Much to Siraj's frustration, Salt countered with a monstrous 105-metre pulled six that sailed into the adjacent metro sheds - a premeditated response to a 144kph bouncer. Such a blow can dent a bowler's confidence, even shake his resolve. But not Siraj's. Unfazed, he struck back in style, landing the ball on a good length, getting it to nip away off the seam, and splattering Salt's stumps as the batter attempted an ambitious golf swing. It was as if Siraj was engulfed by a mystical power that stayed with him all night.
He didn't need to push the speed gun to its limits to be RCB's wrecking ball. It was all about skill, a deep understanding of his craft, and the unwavering belief that his body would respond exactly as he intended. This was Siraj at his peak - far removed from the bowler who ran out of steam in the latter stages of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, only to return home and find himself sidelined from India's white-ball plans.
"I was playing matches consistently, so, I wasn't realising the mistakes I was making," he said when asked about his rhythm. "I took a break and focused on my fitness and bowling. It also helped mentally. Then when I joined GT, I spoke to Ashu [Ashish Nehra, coach] bhai. So it's coming out well and I am confident. Ashu bhai tells me to go out and have fun. There's no bigger confidence-booster than that."
Siraj's first two wickets came from his potent mix of hard lengths and sharp movement off the pitch, his third - dismissing half-centurion Liam Livingstone - was just as crucial, potentially denying RCB vital runs at the death. More than the runs, though, it took the momentum away from RCB just as Livingstone was igniting a late surge. His brutal assault on Rashid Khan - who registered 0 for 54, his joint-second-most expensive T20 spell - had begun to turn the tide, only for Siraj to snatch it back.
"I have only one mindset that as a bowler, it is very important to have belief," he said. "If you don't have belief, then obviously you will panic from inside. Then when you hit a six, then you tend to try something else. So, the most important thing is to have the belief that I can do it. No matter which wicket I am bowling on, I have belief. That is my mindset that I can do it."
Bowling the way he did, Siraj looked unshackled, free from the mental cobwebs that may have weighed him down in recent times. His fiery start to IPL 2025 could well mark the beginning of a happy chapter with GT.