Nottingham : Following his match-winning performance for England in the second Test against the West Indies, spinner Shoaib Bashir opened up on bowling spin in England and how he feels about his position in the national set-up.
A fifer from Bashir crushed the West Indies' dream of a comeback as they were skittled out for 143 runs during a run-chase of 385 runs after a glorious fightback during the second Test at Nottingham.
WI had gained a first-inning lead of 41 runs, scoring 457 in reply to England's first-inning total of 416 runs. But the Three Lions' commendable batting display led by Harry Brook and Joe Root helped the hosts to 425 runs, setting 385 for the visitors to win. WI could not stay alive in the series as Bashir's spell pushed them to the backfoot and England sealed a 2-0 series win with a game to go.
After the game, though he was happy with his five-wicket haul, he was still harsh on himself for conceding 108 runs in the first inning and getting just two wickets. Despite being praised by skipper Ben Stokes for hunting for wickets amid heavy run-scoring by the West Indies in their first innings, Bashir said that he is still working on controlling the run flow and is "always harsh on himself."
He also drew comparisons between England and Indian conditions, the latter being the place where he made his international debut this year.
"Obviously, in India, it is different conditions. So you come here and for the first inning, you do not get much time [to bowl]. I am just trying to work on consistency. I was not too happy with the way I bowled in the first inning. So it was nice to cash in there," said Bashir, as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.
"Always harsh [on myself], always looking for ways to improve and I think that is one thing that would not change. I was leaking boundaries quite frequently, but at the same time, I still was trying to take a wicket and I think there is a lot to work on from that and just gaining more experience will help me," he added.
Bashir said that it is difficult to bowl in England but one gets his rewards as the match continues.
"I am grateful I am a 6ft 4in spinner because it is a nice attribute to have. 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," he added.
Bashir has had some fine months as of late. After being released by Surrey in age-group cricket and then securing a county deal with Somerset last year, he was picked by England for the tour of India after Stokes watched a clip of him bowling on Instagram. Bashir went on to become the youngest bowler to take a Test five-wicket haul for England, outdoing the record of James Anderson made 21 years back.
As England works on developing a strong bowling attack for the big 2025-26 Ashes assignment in Australia, his height, release point, etc. stand out, and he is being groomed for a key role in the marquee series. But Bashir does not feel his spot is guaranteed and is going to stay grounded, take things step by step.
"No, it [conversations with management] was nothing like that. I am just grateful to be in the position I am in. I take things step by step and I think religion helps me with that. I am always going to stay grounded, and humble. I remember back when I started, things were quite tough for me and growing up, cricket was not the easiest thing. So yeah, just trying to enjoy every moment I have in an England shirt," he said.
The hosts wrapped up the series-clinching triumph late on the fourth day, with spinner Shoaib Bashir (5/41) claiming the third five-wicket haul of his career to help England dismiss the West Indies for 143 in pursuit of 385 for victory.
It means England now hold a 2-0 series lead in the three-match series against the West Indies and Ben Stokes' side gets the chance to clinch a series sweep when the third and final Test commences in Birmingham on Friday.
In the second Test, the West Indies won the toss and opted to bowl first.
England delivered a fine batting performance, powered by Ollie Pope's sixth Test ton (121 in 167 balls, with 15 fours and a six) and fine half-centuries from Ben Duckett (71 in 59 balls, with 14 fours) and skipper Ben Stokes (69 in 104 balls, with eight fours). England made 416/10 in 88.3 overs.
Alzarri Joseph (3/98) was the pick of the bowlers for WI. Jayden Seales, Kavem Hodge, Kevin Sinclair took two wickets, while Shamar Joseph got one wicket.
In their first inning, WI was struggling at 84/3, staring at yet another potential big loss.
However, Alick Athanaze (82 in 99 balls, with 10 fours and a six) and Kavem Hodge (120 in 171 balls, with 19 fours) pulled out a brilliant counter-attacking partnership of 175 runs. Later on, wicketkeeper-batter Joshua da Silva (82* in 122 balls, with 10 fours and three sixes) pulled off an impressive 71-run partnership for the tenth wicket along with Shamar Joseph (33 in 27 balls, with five fours and two sixes), which helped WI breach England's first innings score and take a 41-run lead. WI was bundled out for 457 runs in 111.5 overs.
Chris Woakes (4/84) was the top wicket-taker for England. Young pacer Gus Atkinson and spinner Shoaib Bashir also took two wickets each, while skipper Ben Stokes and Mark Wood got one.
In their second inning, England responded to West Indies' fightback with vigour and loads of runs. While Ben Duckett (76 in 92 balls, with 11 fours) and Ollie Pope (51 in 67 balls, with six fours) scored fifties, Root (122) and Harry Brook (109 in 132 balls, with 13 fours) scored big centuries to take England to 425/10 in 92.2 overs, setting the West Indies a target of 385 runs to win.
Seales (4/97) was the leading wicket-taker for West Indies in the second innings, with Alzarri also getting two scalps. Shamar, Sinclair and Holder got a wicket each.