Shoaib Bashir is ready to go for the Ashes and make up for the pain he felt when his summer ended prematurely, according to England spin bowling coach Jeetan Patel.
England’s favorite spinner heads to Perth next week to continue preparations for the first Test on November 21, which will be his first appearance since breaking a finger against India in mid-July.
Bashir, who had a screw inserted into the little finger of his non-bowling hand, recently attended a spin camp overseen by ex-Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara and has been working with England Lions.
He will continue under the management of former England spinner Richard Dawson until he makes the switch in a few weeks to Patel, who has backed Bashir to flourish in Australia this winter.
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Excited
“He’s super excited to get back to playing cricket,” Patel said. “That injury during the India Series, which hurt him, he was quite devastated, but he has come back strong.
“I think he is really ready and excited for a series that can offer him a lot.”
After missing the last three Tests against India and being overlooked by Somerset at the end of the English season, Bashir will have just one warm-up ahead of his first experience of Ashes cricket.
That will be England taking on Andrew Flintoff’s Lions from November 13 to 15, but Patel is confident 22-year-old Bashir won’t need much maintenance to be ready for the bid to reclaim the urn.
(Bradley Collyer/PA)
Myth
“I think that’s a bit of a myth for Bash; he’s too young to understand that,” Patel added. “It’s almost like because he’s so raw about it, he takes everything in stride.
“He loves playing for England, he shows that within the group, and the boys love that he stands for that.
“He has taken a different path to international cricket and he is always learning, but the fact that he loves playing for England is what the boys feed off of and he gives everything he can for the team.”
(Joe Giddens/PA)
Great asset
Patel, the former New Zealand spinner who was speaking in his hometown of Wellington on Saturday ahead of England’s third ODI against the Black Caps, similarly raved about all-rounder Will Jacks.
Jacks was a selection in left field as a substitute for Bashir, beating Rehan Ahmed, Liam Dawson and Jack Leach.
He has a Test five-for but was last in white for England in 2022 and could be deployed in a different role to Bashir as a lower-order batsman offering part-time off-spin.
“I definitely think he’s a great asset to our group,” Patel added. “A Test five-for-debut isn’t bad, is it, especially in Pakistan.
“He has grown from what he was when he first played for England to what he offers now. He is someone who has just rounded himself. I think he is a huge asset to English cricket.”
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