'He kept calling me 'Sir when will I get a chance in the Indian team?' Shastri was like 'Kaun hai yeh?'': Ex-India coach
The former India coach recalled when he was bombarded with calls from an India youngster asking about his call-up in the team, before the matter finally reached Ravi Shastri's ears.
Think of some of the strongest Indian teams of all time; which ones come to mind? The 1985 unit which won the World Championship of cricket, arguably known as the greatest Indian team of all time, is one. 25 years later, MS Dhoni's brigade made a billion dreams come true when it lifted the World Cup in 2011. After India's tumultuous ending at the 2007 World Cup, Dhoni led a revolution, first winning a T20 World Cup the same year with a young brigade and then trooping a bunch of youngsters and experienced hands to winning the ultimate prize. If that team wasn't strong enough, what was?
But if Dhoni triggered a new landscape in Indian cricket, the mighty successful pair of former coach Ravi Shastri and ex-captain Virat Kohli broke down barriers. The Kohli-Shastri duo made sure that India not only became unbeatable at home, but pushed their opponents overseas. They vowed to make Team India the best touring team in the world, and at a time where most sides fumble playing on away territories, India won back-to-back Test series in Australia, drew in England and reached the final of the inaugural World Test Championship.
But all the three aforementioned Indian teams are strong in their own ways, the team under Kohli and Shastri from 2017 and 2021 will have a special mention. Some of the most stories comebacks were scripted by this unit, dishing out a touch of dominance that only the Australian team of the early 2000s displayed. This period saw a plethora of youngsters come to the fore and immediately create an impact – Rishabh Pant, Suryakumar Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Shubman Gill… the list goes on. Kohli, along with Shastri, bowling coach Bharat Arun, batting coach Sanjay Bangar and fielding coach R Sridhar made this unit stand head and shoulder above the rest.
While all four of these men played their parts with aplomb, special mention goes to Arun for shaping the fast-bowling attack. He transformed Mohammed Shami's fitness, turning him into a ticking timebomb, made Jasprit Bumrah even more lethal and helped Siraj in every step of the way. Arun played a huge role in Siraj's rise, guiding him through his time with Hyderabad in the Ranji Trophy all the way to the Indian team in a short span of time. In an interesting revelation, Arun revealed how Siraj would constantly be in touch with him, hoping to get a call-up to the Indian team. Siraj had picked up 41 wickets for Hyderabad in the 2016-2017 Ranji season and was knocking on the door of selectors. However, Arun felt the pacer was undercooked and told him to wait for his turn.
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"Subsequently after doing well for Hyderabad, I went and joined the Indian team while Siraj played India A. And everytime he did well in a match, he would call me and say 'Sir, when are you calling me?' I asked 'Where?'. And he would go '... in the Indian team sir. When will I get a chance?' I said 'Pick more wickets and once you impress in India A tour, you will be there,'" Arun said on the Cricbuzz Specials show, 'Rise of New India'.
Siraj impressed with impressive performances for India A, then the IPL. He made his India debut in 2017 but his economy rate was a concern, which forced him in and out of the Indian team. Harking back to that breakout year, Arun recalled how Siraj's eagerness had caught the attention of Shastri, who despite not knowing much about the pacer, was impressed by his sheer self-belief. Siraj eventually made his Test debut in 2020, eventually going on to cement his place in the Playing XI, but that memory is still fresh in Arun's mind
"Every time he bowled a good spell, I thought he did an exceptional job while playing for India A. One such call I remember; Ravi Shastri asked me and was like 'Kaun hai yeh? (Who is he?)' I said 'Siraj... this is the background and he is calling me to ask when he would be part of this Indian team. One thing Ravi told me was 'you have to give him credit for his confidence'. Someone who has the belief to call me and ask me 'When are you calling me? That's confidence,'" added Arun.
