Mohammed Siraj fires shots at Rohit Sharma over ‘old ball’ criticism: "Numbers speak for themselves"

The star India National Cricket Team right-arm pacer Mohammed Siraj has finally responded to the comments made by skipper Rohit Sharma on his effectiveness going down with the old ball.

Mohammed Siraj, while firing shots at Rohit Sharma, said that the 'numbers speak for themselves' as his performance with both the new ball and old ball has been highly impactful.

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Mohammed Siraj missed out on India's Champions Trophy 2025 squad

Despite being one of the most reliable pacers in Indian cricket, Mohammed Siraj missed out on the flight to Dubai for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

He was effectively replaced by Harshit Rana in the squad as India opted to go with just three pacers - Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, and Rana - with Hardik Pandya being the fourth seam-bowling option.

Siraj's snub for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 came as a major shock to many, as his performance in ODIs has been good over the years.

Speaking to the media, Rohit Sharma and the chief selector Ajit Agarkar were asked to justify their decision to drop Siraj, and responding to this, the Indian skipper said that 'Siraj's effectiveness comes down a little bit if he's not going to take the new ball.'

I have taken the most wickets with the old ball in the past year - Mohammed Siraj

Siraj, meanwhile, has rejected Rohit Sharma's theory of his ineffectiveness with the old ball, saying that his performance has been one of the best in the world and his economy rate is also low with the old ball.

"I have taken the most wickets with the old ball in the past year among the world's ten fastest bowlers. My economy rate is also low. The numbers speak for themselves—I have performed well with both the new and old ball," Siraj said at a press conference, as quoted by TOI.

During the media interaction, Siraj was asked to share his views on the Impact Player rule in the Indian Premier League (IPL), which has once again become a hot topic of discussion ahead of IPL 2025. The Indian pacer labeled the rule as 'unfair' and elaborated:

"As a bowler, I feel the rule is unfair. Earlier, taking an early wicket or two used to shift the momentum in favor of the bowling side. Now, even after an early breakthrough, batters continue to hit fours and sixes. The wickets are flat, and the dew factor also comes into play, making it very difficult for bowlers."

I felt emotional after leaving RCB, Virat Kohli has played a major role in my career - Mohammed Siraj

Before the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 snub, Siraj faced a heartbreak when the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) decided to release him ahead of the IPL 2025 auction despite him being one of the top performers for the franchise.

Talking about this, Siraj said that he was quite emotional after the RCB exit as Virat Kohli played a big role in shaping his career and retained him when he was going through a tough phase.

"I felt emotional after leaving RCB. Virat bhai has played a major role in my career. He backed and supported me a lot when I was in a tough situation in 2018-19, choosing to retain me. After that, my performances improved, and my career graph went up. GT will face RCB on April 2, and I am looking forward to it," Siraj said.