NEWS
Follow UsIn the wake of becoming the youngest ever English bowler to take a five-wicket haul at home, Shoaib Bashir is already being spoken of as the man to lead England’s spin attack in the Ashes in Australia next year.
The extra bounce Bashir generates due to his height will be a handful in Australian conditions, but, most importantly, he is someone who does not carry any baggage or scars, having never been part of the many whoppings England have suffered Down Under in the past decade.
Even England skipper Ben Stokes has made it clear that the Three Lions have already started to build towards The Ashes — evident by the decision to move on from James Anderson — but Bashir, fresh off scripting history, just wants to live in the moment for the time being.
"No, it [conversations with management] was nothing like that. I'm just grateful to be in the position I am,” Bashir told ESPNcricinfo, playing down Ashes hype.
“I take things step by step and I think religion helps me with that. I'm always going to stay grounded, stay humble.
“I remember back when I started things were quite tough for me and growing up cricket wasn't the easiest thing. So yeah, just trying to enjoy every moment I have in an England shirt."
It’s been a rollercoaster of a couple of weeks for the 20-year-old. Two weeks ago at Lord’s, the seam friendly conditions meant that Bashir did not bowl a single ball all game despite being a part of the starting XI.
But at Trent Bridge, he bowled the side to victory in the second innings by taking a five-wicket haul.
The off-spinner made his debut in spin-friendly conditions in India, but he admitted that bowling spin in England is tougher, and is a whole different challenge altogether.
"Bowling spin in England is pretty tough, but also you reap your rewards later on as a Test goes and I'm grateful I'm a 6ft 4in spinner because it's a nice attribute to have,” Bashir said.
“The extra bounce helps. We saw it there. If you land the ball in the right areas, a few will bounce and a few will skid on, so the bounce does help."
As someone who has still only bowled a total of 3,254 balls in first class cricket, Bashir insisted that he is working on the consistency aspect.
“Just trying to work on consistency. I wasn't too happy with the way I bowled in the first innings. So it was nice to cash in there,” he said.
"Always harsh [on myself], always looking for ways to improve and I think that's one thing that won't change. I was leaking boundaries quite frequently, but at the same time, I still was trying to take a wicket and I think there's a lot to work on from that and just gaining more experience will help me,” he added.
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