Gujarat Titans’ star pacer Mohammed Siraj produced one of his finest spells in the shortest format to guide the Indian men’s cricket team to a 29-run victory against the United States of America (USA) in their T20I Cup 2026 opener on Saturday.

Defending a modest total of 161, Siraj scripted a fairytale comeback in the T20I setup after he delivered a match-defining spell with figures of three for 29 to help the defending champions kick off the global T20 spectacle with a hard-fought win. 

After being drafted into the squad as an injury replacement for speedster Harshit Rana, Siraj was immediately picked in India’s playing XI. The 31-year-old quickly repaid the management’s faith with a match-winning spell at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

With India looking for early breakthroughs, Siraj drew first blood as he removed USA’s wicketkeeper-batter Andries Gous. 

Despite making his first T20I appearance for India since July 2024, the Gujarat Titans’ bowling spearhead looked in great rhythm as he soon bagged the huge wicket of Saiteja Mukkamalla to reduce USA to 13/3 in 3.2 overs, which later proved to be extremely crucial in the Men in Blue’s victory.

Siraj later added one more wicket to his tally off the last ball of the match as he trapped Shubham Ranjane in front of the stumps.

Following his sensational spell, Siraj revealed that he had to cancel his short trip to Spain to watch his favourite football club, Real Madrid take on Real Sociedad in the ongoing La Liga 2025-26.

“Suddenly (on Friday), Surya bhai called me. He said, ‘Get ready, pack your bags, and come’. I said, ‘Surya bhai, don’t joke, because this is not going to happen’. He said, I am telling you the truth — get ready. As soon as he hung up, I got a call from Pragyan Ojha, so suddenly, I got shocking news. No one can change what God has scripted. I came, played the match — everything was written. God is great. No one can do anything beyond that,” Siraj revealed in the post-match press conference.

“My plan was that on the 15th, there is a Real Madrid match, and I was going to watch it. After that, Ramzan was coming, so I had planned around that. But whatever God has scripted will happen,” he added.

After delivering a match-defining spell, Siraj will now aim to continue his brilliant form when India hosts Namibia in their second group stage match of the ongoing T20I Cup 2026 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Thursday.