Who is Mohamed Shiraz, the Sri Lankan speedster making his debut vs India?

With Matheesha Pathirana, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka and Nuwan Thushara all injured, Sri Lanka were forced to dig really deep into their fast-bowling reserves for the three-match ODI series against India.

The full-blown crisis forced the Lankans to add two uncapped seamers to the squad in Mohamed Shiraz and Eshan Malinga. 

At the time of writing this, Sri Lanka have already handed a maiden international cap to 29-year-old Shiraz, who has bolted into the national picture out of nowhere.

So, who exactly is Mohamed Shiraz?

A right-arm speedster who has the ability to clock 140 clicks, Shiraz has quite an unbelievable List A record: 47 matches played, 80 wickets taken at an average of 17.52 and economy of 4.57.

But him waltzing into the Sri Lanka squad for this India series is a case of being the right man at the right time. Just three days ago, playing in the Major Clubs Limited Over Tournament, Shiraz took 6/21 representing Burgher Recreation Club against Kurunegala Youth Cricket Club. The rich vein of form Shiraz showed at the right time led to the selectors drafting him into the ODI squad.

Shiraz’s cricketing journey started back in 2008, at the age of 13, where he represented his college Madeena Central and made heads turn with his performances. As a teenager, he was shaped by his childhood coaches Mohammed Rikaas and Mohammed Rajmi, both of whom nurtured his talent and helped him evolve and develop as a pacer.

After toiling hard at the youth level, it was in 2016 that Shiraz finally got his big break, making his first class debut for Colts CC in the Premier League Tournament Tier A. However, he had a pretty forgettable debut, returning figures of 1/37 off the five overs he bowled. In fact, Shiraz struggled a lot in first class cricket in his initial years, picking just five wickets in his first seven FC games at an average of 62.

But the speedster had a breakthrough 2018, where he picked up 21 wickets in total, including five-wicket hauls in consecutive innings representing Burgher Recreation Club. 

The impressive 2018 led to Shiraz getting his maiden Sri Lanka ‘A’ call-up in 2019, against Ireland ‘A’. And the speedster impressed in his SL ‘A’ debut, picking four in his maiden innings and six in the match in total.

It was after this period that his List A career took off. In 2019, Shiraz picked 17 wickets in List A cricket at an average of 17.5. He backed it up with an even crazier 2021, where he took 14 wickets at an average of 9.8.

But it wasn’t until 2024 that the right-armer got to represent Sri Lanka ‘A’ in List A cricket, with his maiden appearance for SL ‘A’ in 50-over cricket coming against Afghanistan ‘A’ earlier this year.

The 29-year-old has, at times, struggled for consistency in his career but the talent he possesses has meant that he’s always been in the national selectors’ radar.

Now, things have finally come together for Shiraz, who has been capped at the international level, against India of all teams, due to a combination of good form and good fortune. 

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