RCB hairstyle of the year 2020: Mohammed Siraj is the winner by a mile

What’s the whackiest hairstyle you have seen on a cricket field? Very rarely does an out-of-the-world hairstyle invoke the picture of an Indian cricketer? ‘Cool Hairstyles’ have been a fiefdom of West Indian cricketers - much like T20s. Every now and then someone would try to challenge their authority, but the threat to the Caribbean domination would be only as serious as Glenn Maxwell’s IPL record.

It’s not like Indian players are noob when it comes to curating the grass on their scalp in a camera-drawing manner. One of our greatest captains shot to prominence on the back of a hairstyle that earned him praise from the President of Pakistan. However, years later MS Dhoni’s wife Sakshi Singh Dhoni made it clear that the ex-India skipper did not have a chance if he had continued with that hairstyle. So, clearly that haircut did not cut it for Mrs Dhoni.

Dhoni was perhaps the last Indian cricketer who tried to challenge the Caribbean authority. His game too was similar, unconventional with innovations such as a helicopter shot. Post the Dhoni era, Virat Kohli did not take much risk and treaded a safe path of sharp haircuts and immaculately managed beard. In between we saw Ishant Sharmas and Umesh Yadavs try out different hairdos, but it was all seasonal and clearly not strong enough to register in our memory or on the billboards outside hair salons.

However, this year there has been a change in trends. There were a few catchy hairdos that caught our attention but the one from the RCB camp stole the show. That’s the thing about style statement – at times it comes from a very unlikely place.

Mohammed Siraj’s tiny bun complemented with side trims earn him the coveted badge and the inaugural RCB hairstyle of the year award. He did have competition from Dale Steyn but the South African’s tresses could not trump Siraj’s stunning bun. Siraj could not be contacted for a quote on his latest achievement – as big if not bigger than the debut performance at MCG.

Among all the things this year taught us and our star cricketers – hairstyling was one of them. We cannot again confirm the authenticity of this piece of information but the grapevine has it that Siraj cut his hair on his own while in a bio-bubble playing for the RCB in the UAE.

Although, why did he do that despite the franchisee arranging for a top-class hairdresser in the hotel is again a secret we will have to wait for Siraj to reveal.

For now, he has aced the hairstyle of the year and we can’t but admire the courage of the Hyderabad-born. After all, he applied the age-old cricketing knowledge even while choosing his hairstyle – you will never know if it works, if you don’t try.