Follow UsMohammed Siraj is not part of the white-ball series against South Africa as the Indian team management wanted to manage his workload. However, he is currently playing in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for Hyderabad.
In his only match for Hyderabad so far, the pacer picked up 1/15 against Uttar Pradesh from his four overs. Former India batter Aakash Chopra says he does not understand the logic behind Siraj playing domestic cricket when he was rested from ODIs and T20Is against South Africa.
"What has happened with Miyan Magic? He used to be a three-format player earlier. He used to play ODIs, T20Is, and Tests. In fact, in ODIs, there was a two-year period when no one took more wickets than him for India. He was constantly picking up wickets. We were saying he is in a different league altogether," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
"However, after that, he was suddenly dropped from the Champions Trophy team. Rohit Sharma was the captain then, and the captain said his effectiveness reduces with the old ball. The consolation of workload management is given at times. However, if that's the case, why is he playing domestic cricket? If he doesn't play the other formats, he will next play for India in August."
Siraj has 73 wickets from 47 ODIs, while in T20Is, the 31-year-old has picked up 14 wickets in 16 matches. In the Test series against South Africa, Siraj was not effective as he managed just six wickets in two matches as India were beaten 2-0.