Indian star pacer Mohammed Siraj speaks on his relationship with Virat Kohli

Mohammed Siraj played for RCB for seven years.

Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj has opened up about his close relationship with batting legend Virat Kohli. The right-arm pacer has said that Kohli always backed him during his tough phases. Notably, both players were part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) franchise for many years. Also, Siraj played many games for India under former skipper Kohli.

Siraj last played for Team India during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2025. He clinched 20 wickets across five matches in the series. However, Team India lost the series 3-1 to Australia. The right-arm pacer also faced criticism for his struggles with the ball in the series.

Interestingly, Siraj has been part of the ODI setup for many years. However, he was not selected for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 earlier this year. Young pacers Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana were selected with senior pacer Mohammed Shami. The Indian team, led by Rohit Sharma, won the title by defeating New Zealand in the final.

Virat bhaiya supported me a lot: Mohammed Siraj

During a conversation with Cricbuzz, Siraj opened up about his close bond with Virat Kohli. Siraj said that Kohli has always supported him during his tough phases. Under his captaincy, Kohli has always backed Siraj for his aggressive attitude on the field in the IPL as well as in the Indian team.

“Virat bhaiya gave me a lot of backing and support during my tough phases – I have witnessed many ups and downs – Virat bhaiya backs me a lot in my down phase”, the 31-year-old said.

Siraj and Kohli were the poster boys for the RCB franchise for many years. However, the franchise did not retain the pacer for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. Kohli is still a part of RCB, while Siraj is playing for Gujarat Titans (GT). However, both of them have performed brilliantly in IPL 2025 so far.

Kohli is the leading run-getter for his side with 249 runs in seven innings. He has also slammed three half-centuries in the tournament. On the other hand, Siraj has clinched 11 wickets across seven games at an economy of 8.96. He also captured a four-wicket haul in one match.

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