Former England cricketer Mark Butcher has praised Shoaib Bashir’s performance in England’s recent Test series win over West Indies. The Test series win helped England stabilise their position in the WTC points table.
Earlier, Brendon McCullum said that he was happy with the growth of England’s Test team. Now, Mark Butcher has praised Shoaib Bashir as he feels he is ahead of his counterparts like Rehan Ahmed and Will Jacks.
Bashir took nine wickets in the Test series against the West Indies. He bowled at an average of 27.22 and also took a fifer. The former England batsman said Bashir’s fundamental skills are better than those of Will Jacks’ Reham Ahmed.
He’s really clever: Mark Butcher on Shoaib Bashir
“I think the difference perhaps with Shoaib Bashir compared to Rehan Ahmed or Will Jacks, who both had their moments in Pakistan, is that he has a real foundation and fundamental ability in terms of control of length and line, and the fact that even at such a young age he is able to go up and down in terms of pace and flight. He is really skilful,”Butcher said.
He also praised the young pitcher for pitching with a big heart and not getting angry or distracted when batters tried to chase him.
“He’s not one of those guys who gets upset or angry if someone comes after him, he’s happy to accept it and seems to know himself well enough to know where he wants outfield players and what he’s going to do. That’s amazing for someone his young age and gives you an idea of ​​how good he could be, so it’s a big no-no for the selectors.” The butcher added.
With a long season of Test cricket ahead for England, the continuity of Bashir’s form and fitness will be an unknown. The England management needs to take good care of him and ensure that he remains fit. Bashir played as a specialist spinner in the series against West Indies. The England management needs to have at least two or three spinner options, including Bashir, so that they can rotate.
This is where the roles of Rehan Ahmed and Will Jacks come into their own. The trio can form a solid spin bowling core in Test cricket, with Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone playing that role in white-ball cricket.
Jack Leach, a veteran of 35 Test matches for England, played his last Test match against India in January 2024. After playing the first Test against India, Leach was ruled out of the second Test onwards due to a knee injury. Since then, he is yet to return to the Test team. With England preparing for a long season of Test cricket, Leach needs to return to the Test team for the Ashes series next year.
Meanwhile, England can rejoice in the Test series win against West Indies and work on the positives from the series win. They will next face Sri Lanka in a three-match Test series starting on August 21.
