"Jaao Auto Chalao": Mohammed Siraj Opens Up About Painful Troll Messages

India's pace spearhead Mohammed Siraj has revealed the deeply hurtful abuse he's received from internet trolls, including messages telling him to "go drive an auto"—a cruel reference to his late father's profession as an auto rickshaw driver in Hyderabad. Speaking candidly on the Indian Express Idea Exchange, the 31-year-old fast bowler exposed the fickle nature of cricket fans who transform from admirers to abusers based on a single match performance.

From Hero to Zero in One Match

Siraj described the dramatic swing in public perception that professional cricketers face with brutal regularity.

"When you perform well, the entire world is on your side. Fans will say, 'Oh, there isn't a bowler like Siraj in the world!'. But if the very next game doesn't go well, people will say, 'Areh yeh kaisa bowler hai, kidhar se uthake le aayein hain, jaao auto chalao' ('What kind of bowler is this? Where have they picked him up from? Go and drive an auto'). I mean, what is the point?"

The pacer's frustration at this whiplash treatment was palpable as he questioned the logic behind such extreme reactions.

"In one match, you were the hero, and the next match you're zero? How can people change so fast?"

The Personal Nature of the Attack

What makes the "jaao auto chalao" taunt particularly painful is its targeting of Siraj's humble background. His late father, Mohammed Ghouse, worked as an auto rickshaw driver to support the family in Hyderabad, sacrificing his own comfort to fund his son's cricketing dreams. For trolls to weaponise this detail—turning a story of sacrifice and dignity into an insult—reveals the cruelty that often pervades social media discourse around cricket.

Rather than celebrating Siraj's remarkable journey from those humble beginnings to representing India in Test cricket, certain sections of the internet chose to mock his family background during difficult patches of form. This classist abuse speaks to broader issues of privilege and prejudice within cricket fandom.

MS Dhoni's Wise Counsel

Siraj revealed that former India captain MS Dhoni warned him about this very phenomenon when he first joined the national team in 2017.

"I remember when I joined the India team, MS Dhoni had told me, 'Kisiki baato mein nahin aana. Jab tu achha karega, toh poori duniya tere saath rahegi, aur jab kharaab karega, yahi duniya tujhe gaali degi.' (Don't pay attention to what others say. When you'll be performing well, the entire world will be with you, and when you won't, they'll abuse you)."

Dhoni's advice, borne from his own experience handling intense public scrutiny as India captain, provided Siraj with a framework for managing the inevitable ups and downs of international cricket and public opinion.

Finding Mental Peace

Through these difficult experiences, Siraj learned to tune out external noise and focus on what truly matters.

"I realized I don't need any outside opinions. What matters to me is what my family thinks and what my teammates think of me."

This mental shift—prioritizing the opinions of those who know him best and care about him most—has been crucial to Siraj's sustained success at international level. By creating boundaries around whose opinions carry weight, he's protected his mental health while maintaining focus on performance.

Silencing Critics Through Performance

Siraj's response to trolls hasn't been through words but through wickets. His 2025 England tour performance—23 wickets in five Tests including a match-winning spell at The Oval—placed him alongside legends Kapil Dev and Jasprit Bumrah as the only Indian pacers to claim 20-plus wickets in multiple Test series.

Most recently, he grabbed seven wickets as India demolished West Indies by an innings and 140 runs in Ahmedabad, continuing his upward trajectory as one of India's premier fast bowlers. Currently ranked 15th in ICC's Test bowling rankings, Siraj has established himself as a crucial part of India's pace attack across conditions.

The Broader Trolling Issue

Siraj's experience highlights a troubling aspect of modern cricket fandom where players are subjected to abuse that crosses lines of decency. While criticism of performances is part of professional sports, attacks targeting family backgrounds, religion, or personal circumstances reveal deeper societal issues that cricket communities must address.

The pacer's willingness to speak openly about these experiences may help other young cricketers facing similar abuse, showing them that even established international players struggle with online trolling and that building mental resilience through focusing on supportive voices is key to survival.