Having won a Player of the Match award for the first time in his ODI career, India fast bowler Mohammed Siraj didn’t think twice before confirming to Star Sports Network that he would be donating the prize money to a deserving set of individuals after India defeated Sri Lanka by 10 wickets in Asia Cup 2023 final at the R Premdasa Stadium today.
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A generous Siraj, who had gifted an iPhone and a smart watch to his childhood friend earlier this year, has made the latest donation 29 months after receiving a brand new Mahindra Thar as a gift from business tycoon Anand Mahindra. For the unversed, it is one of the three cars that the 29-year old player owns.
Siraj, who registered a maiden five-wicket haul in limited-overs cricket, ran through the Sri Lankan batting lineup with a top-class display of swing bowling after their captain Dasun Shanaka (0) won the toss and opted to bat. Siraj, who had picked all his six wickets for just seven runs at a point in time, ended up with figures of 7-1-21-6.
In what are the joint fourth-best bowling figures for an Indian bowler, it played a titular role in bundling out Sri Lanka for their second-lowest innings total of 50 in 15.2 overs.
Mohammed Siraj Donates Player Of The Match Prize Money Worth $5,000
Speaking to Star Sports Network during the presentation ceremony, Siraj expressed delight at bowling what he considers his “best spell” in the format. Been on the unfortunate side of things with respect to not picking the number of wickets he deserved in the last two matches, the right-arm bowler laid emphasis on keeping things simple on Sunday.
“I have been bowling well for a while. The batters were getting beaten during the last two matches, [but] today I found the edges. I just tried to hit the areas. The way I thought, I executed it and the plan was successful.”
Siraj, who has now won a match award once in each of the three formats of international cricket, immediately announced that a prize money of $5,000 would be handed out to the groundsmen in Colombo. For the unversed, the ground staff at the venue worked tirelessly throughout the tournament. Had it not been for their mind-boggling efforts, a large majority of matches would’ve been washed out due to inclement weather conditions.
“I want to give this cash prize to the groundsmen. They deserve it. If they were not around, this tournament would not have been successful.”
It is worth of a mention that BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) secretary and ACC (Asian Cricket Council) president Jay Shah had also announced a prize money of $50,000 for the groundsmen in both Colombo and Kandy earlier in the day.
Mohammed Siraj Was Gifted A Mahindra Thar 29 Months Ago
Part of a second-string Indian squad which had registered a historic victory during Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2020-21 in Australia, Siraj was one of the six recipients of a popular four-wheel SUV in India.
Ecstatic at the sight of India winning their second consecutive Test series down under, and without several key players on the second occasion, Mahindra had announced a Thar (priced approximately around $15,000) each for the five debutants namely Shubman Gill, Siraj, Navdeep Saini, T Natrajan and Washington Sundar in January 2021.
Pacer Shardul Thakur was the sixth beneficiary for having played just a solitary Test before that tour. Readers must note that Siraj had received the delivery of his Thar in April that year. Occupied with Indian Premier League duty at Royal Challengers Bangalore, Siraj’s mother and elder brother had received the car in his absence.
Like Mohammed Siraj, Had Rohit Sharma Also Donated Player Of The Match Prize Money In Asia Cup 2023?
Contrary to a post uploaded by a fan account of India captain Rohit Sharma on social media platform X on Wednesday, it is noteworthy that he hadn’t donated his Player of the Match prize money to Colombo groundsmen.
A primary reason why what the aforementioned user shared was a fake image is that Sharma hadn’t won the match award during India vs Sri Lanka Super Four encounter on Tuesday. While Sharma had won an ODI match award after more than three years against Nepal earlier this month, there was no such official announcement from his side.
