Shoaib Bashir handed England Test recall after Ashes nightmare
Shoaib Bashir will return to England’s Test team at Lord’s having spent the winter in the Ashes wilderness.
Bashir’s place in the side for the first Test against New Zealand was confirmed when he was named ahead of fellow spinner Rehan Ahmed in a 12-man squad, which will be whittled down to 11 before the toss on Thursday.
England have one final selection decision to make, as they weigh up including a second debutant, Sonny Baker, or Gus Atkinson in the pace attack.
Bashir was, by coach Brendon McCullum’s admission, a selection “punt” when he was plucked from obscurity to play in India two years ago. He was groomed to play in last winter’s Ashes but, having injured his finger against India at Lord’s last summer, found himself overlooked for the part-time off-spinner Will Jacks.
Bashir moved to Derbyshire this summer and has been rebuilding his career. He has taken 15 wickets at 37.6, which makes him the leading spinner in Division Two. Meanwhile, all-rounder Ahmed played two matches for Leicestershire then went to the Indian Premier League.
“Since he made the shift in county he’s been able to get game time under his belt – we know he’s an immensely talented cricketer, and he just needs more opportunity,” McCullum said, confirming Bashir would play.
“You can only do so much in the nets. Playing cricket for a young spinner, being able to work through situations and scenarios, to get some game time under his belt over the last little while has been hugely beneficial. He’s growing at quite an amazing speed, not just in his spin bowling, but even just his presence, and his overall athleticism.
“We took a punt on Bash a couple of years ago and if you look at the numbers, whilst it hasn’t been absolutely knock-out, he’s done a remarkable job for us on numerous occasions in quite unfavourable conditions. We firmly believe in Bash as an international cricketer. When I look back to why he wasn’t required in Australia, it wasn’t to do with how the ball was coming out of his hand per se, we just felt the conditions were not conducive to spin bowling – as did Australia.”
McCullum: ‘Sonny is really exciting’
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Another tweak to the side comes with captain Ben Stokes, who turns 35 on the opening day, moving down a place in the batting order to No 7, swapping with wicketkeeper Jamie Smith. England will make four personnel changes to the side that lost the final Ashes Test in Sydney.
Atkinson has completed just one match this year because of a hamstring injury and concussion. Baker is enjoying a strong season for Hampshire, but in two Tests at Lord’s, Atkinson has a 12-wicket haul and a century. Weather – with showers forecast early in the match – will play a part in England’s final selection call.
Explaining the dilemma, McCullum said: “We’ll just work out whether we want the extra air-speed, if all of a sudden it becomes 35 degrees and flattens out. Or we stick to what’s tried and tested at Lord’s and remain with more of the type of bowlers that’ll extract some movement with some overhead conditions.”
Baker had a bruising experience on one-day international and Twenty20 debut last summer but, having suffered a stress-fracture of the back over the winter, has returned in fine form.
“I think those matches have strengthened him to be honest,” McCullum said. “He’s one of those players that learns from tough experiences and he likes some of that constructive feedback too.
“We certainly don’t judge Baker on that match. It was a nice lesson for Sonny and he’s come back better, stronger and a more complete cricketer.
“I think he is going to be a cricketer the country really gets behind when he does play. It’s the air speed from him – he’s quick, you can see he charges in, he leaves everything out there. Some guys have a bit more rhythmical component to their style but Sonny is full noise, you see him celebrating the wickets and he loves the game immensely – he’s got a real deep passion for it and he’s really exciting.”
England’s pace attack is already without Jofra Archer this week. His IPL campaign with Rajasthan Royals only ended last Friday, and he is in Barbados, where he grew up, for a break. McCullum has cast doubt over whether Archer will be available for the second Test at the Oval in a fortnight. He has subsisted on a diet of T20, having not played a red-ball match since December, when his Ashes campaign ended after the third Test.
“Jofra we need to assess,” he said. “He’s having a little bit of a break at the moment. We’ve seen in the past we can leave Jof to his own devices, work on his game and follow a plan that has been set. He turns up having that followed that plan to a tee. When we see him we’ll work out where he sits and if he’s available for the second Test. If not, we’ll look at the third Test.”