Mohammed Siraj was effective with the new ball, impressed with his line and length and produced a match-winning spell for his new IPL franchise, Gujarat Titans (GT), on his emotional return to Bengaluru this season. The right-arm seamer picked three wickets for 19 runs against his former team, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), for whom he played for seven seasons before. His spell was instrumental in helping GT beat RCB by eight wickets on Wednesday night.

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The BCCI selectors dropped Siraj from Team India’s Champions Trophy 2025 squad, citing his lack of effectiveness with the new ball. Instead of putting himself under any pressure, Siraj worked on his game in the meantime. Upon joining former India seamer Ashish Nehra and experienced seamer Ishant Sharma (at GT), he improved it, and the results are there for everyone to see.

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“I had been playing consistently, but during the break, I corrected my mistakes and worked on my fitness,” Siraj explained after his Player of the Match performance. “Once I was picked up by Gujarat Titans, I spoke to Ashish Bhai. He (Nehra) tells me to go enjoy your bowling, and Ishu (Ishant) Bhai tells me what line and length to bowl. My mindset is to have a belief, and then the pitch does not matter.”

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Meanwhile, Siraj bowled tight lines up front against the upbeat RCB openers. Although Phil Salt smacked him for a monstrous 105m six, Siraj dismissed him next ball (clean bowled) on 14. However, before that, he dismissed left-hander Devdutt Padikkal bowled and later accounted for RCB’s highest scorer Liam Livingstone (54), caught behind on 54. The Indian quick also did his famous Cristiano Ronaldo’s ‘sui’ celebration, explaining his love affair behind it.

"I was a bit emotional. I was here for seven years; changed jersey from red to blue. There was some nervousness and some emotion, but the moment I got the ball in my hand, it was full-on," Siraj said. 

When asked about his celebration style, Siraj replied, "I am Ronaldo's fan and, hence, the celebration."

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Buttler saves the day for Gujarat

England great Jos Buttler top-scored for Gujarat, helping them complete the chase and win their second game in IPL 2025. Following Shubman Gill’s dismissal inside the Powerplay, Buttler joined opener Sai Sudharsan in the middle, with the pair making light work of the RCB bowlers. 

While Sai got out shy of yet another fifty-plus score in this tournament, Buttler remained unbeaten on 73 off 39 balls, hitting six sixes and five fours, continuing his incredible form with the bat. 

(With inputs from agencies)