Mohammed Siraj Reveals One Particular Thing He Has Learned from Virat Kohli

Mohammed Siraj praised Virat Kohli's aggressive intensity in Test cricket, stating that it has gone a long way in shaping his mindset on the field.

Mohammed Siraj Reveals One Particular Thing He Has Learned from Virat Kohli

Mohammed Siraj revaled that he learned the 'agressive approach' from Virat Kohli. (via India Today)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

Mohammed Siraj disclosed a unique thing that he learned from former Indian captain Virat Kohli, while playing alongside him for years. The ace Indian speedster revealed that he learned from Kohli to have a ‘fighting approach’ towards the game, and to consider opposition players as ‘enemies’. 

Mohammed Siraj is resting after a gruesome red-ball series against England, which ended in a 2-2 draw. The 31-year-old is among the big names who have missed out on a spot in the Indian T20I side, at the upcoming 2025 Asia Cup. Siraj had a brilliant outing during the recently-concluded Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, finishing as the highest wicket-taker with 23 scalps in five matches, including two five wicket-hauls.

Moreover, during the India-England series, the 31-year-old, apart from his impressive bowling display, also caught attention with his aggressiveness. Throughout the series, he got involved in a number of heated altercations with the English players, including Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Harry Brook. The incident with Duckett also drew a hefty fine, as he gave a fiery send-off to the batter after dismissing him at Lord’s.

Siraj’s unusual approach to the game led many to draw parallels between him and former Indian captain Virat Kohli. In fact, in a recent conversation with Boria Majumdar on RevSportz, the 31-year-old revealed that he learned to take a ‘fighting approach’ from Kohli. Having played alongside the Indian batting legend for both the Indian national team and RCB in the IPL, Siraj spoke about their close bond and the lessons he took.

Mohammed Siraj stated that he drew his bowling energy from the aggression that he carries, another attribute that he drew from Virat Kohli’s approach of treating the opposition as ‘enemies’ on the field, despite being friends off the field.

The Gujarat Titans star also noted that Kohli’s on-field aggression as a captain was even more intense than that of the bowlers, which many believe was key to India’s success in red-ball cricket from 2014 to 2022.

I’ve learned this one particular thing from Virat Kohli, and that is his fighting approach in the game. Off the field, he would be talking very nicely, but on the ground, the opposition is the enemy for him.

Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see whether Mohammed Siraj and Virat Kohli reunite, keeping in mind that the Indian batting icon has already retired from two out of the three formats of international cricket, Tests and T20Is. Siraj’s only chance of playing alongside Kohli will be in ODIs.

Mohammed Siraj Discusses How Crowd Support Helped India to Final Test Victory Against England

Mohammed Siraj opened up about a lesson that he learned from Virat Kohli, about how to rally crowd support. Siraj revealed that it helped the Indian team triumph in the crucial final Test match against England at the Oval, in the 2025 Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. 

Mohammed Siraj final Test
Mohammed Siraj talked about the crowd support that he rallied, in the final Test against England. (via India Today)

Siraj, in the same interview, recalled the final Test against England, where the Men in Blue were on the brink of defeat. In the final innings, in pursuit of a 374-run target, Joe Root and Harry Brook had forged a staggering 195-run partnership for the fourth wicket, with both batters scoring centuries and seemingly taking the game away from the visitors.

However, Siraj noted that following Brook’s wicket on Day 4, and with the match still in control, the crowd played a massive role in their victory. Siraj explained that he did his best to rally the crowd’s support, and their loud cheers ultimately lifted the spirits of the entire Indian team. The energy from the crowd charged up all the bowlers, including himself, helping the Men in Blue secure a six-run victory. He added:

In that last Test at The Oval, I encouraged everyone and we went ahead to get the upper hand in the form of the wicket of [Joe] Root. I have also learned to take crowd support from Virat [Kohli].

The 31-year-old himself finished with figures of 5/104 in the final innings of the Oval Test, picking up the crucial wickets of Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Jamie Smith, Jamie Overton and Gus Atkinson. Siraj was supported on the other side by Prasidh Krishna, who picked up a four-wicket haul.

Also Read: 1983 World Cup Winner Makes Astonishing Claim About India’s T20 World Cup Chances After Asia Cup Announcement