My News

09.05.07

The Times - Why Rashid’s box of tricks will turn heads this summer

Published by Shane Warne

It’s exciting not only for England but also world cricket that England could have a Test leg spinner in the making in Adil Rashid. Having heard about him last season when he burst on to the scene, I was keen to have a look at him. I got my first sight last week, when Hampshire played Yorkshire in the championship, and I have to say that I liked what I saw. He’s only 19, but he’s got something about him. He possesses all the little tricks and toys a good wrist spinner needs -a wrong ‘un, a top-spinner and a slider -and he can bat as well as field pretty well.

It’s now a matter of everyone not getting too excited, of letting him experience more first-class cricket and developing. At the moment, he’s inexperienced, but he has a chance of making it at county level and then the next step, hopefully, international level.

Adil got one for 126 against us in the second innings, but those figures don’t tell the story. The wicket was pretty flat -after all, 850 or so runs for eight wickets were scored on the last two days. He was getting tired towards the end but has a nice loop and a good head on his shoulders and understands the game well.

I had a chat with him after the game when we talked about preparation, working batsmen out, what to look for and how to bowl balls for the non-striker to see.

What Adil needs to think about is what, when and why. What to bowl. When to bowl it. And why he should bowl it. Then it’s a matter of execution. He must stick to his plan and set a batsman up for, say, his wrong ‘un.

People will try to get on top of him early, like they do to all young spinners. He has got to be able to bowl his stock ball, the leg break, eight times out of ten on the spot he wants it to land so that he has something to fall back on. Good players don’t just make a mistake -you have to force them to make one. To do that, you have to vary your pace and flight, or your position on the crease or a few things like that.

If the dry weather that we’ve had for most of this season continues, spinners are going to play a big part in the championship. Yorkshire could play two leggies because they have another promising one in 21-year-old Mark Lawson, who did well against us last year at the Rose Bowl. There will be some competitiveness between them, which will be good for Rashid. The other thing that will help him is the nature of the wickets at Headingley. They’re definitely not the same as when I played Test matches there. It was my least successful English Test ground -I only took a couple of wickets there -but last year in the championship there I got eight wickets in the match.

I think Adil could develop into a genuine all-rounder and perhaps bat at No 7 in a Test line-up. He played me well and read me pretty well. Sadly, I only faced a couple of balls from him when I batted and the wicket was a slow turner, so it was hard to gauge much.

It was nice to be asked to speak to a young leg spinner; it is always interesting and enjoyable to have such an opportunity and to see how they think. I was picking his brain -finding out how he approaches playing, what his expectations are (and what everyone else’s around him are), how he deals with certain situations. I was very impressed that he had some good plans. His general plan was pretty much spot on.

Having so many experienced players around him at Yorkshire will help him Younis Khan, Jacques Rudolph, Jason Gillespie, Darren Gough and Michael Vaughan. Having said that, not everyone needs to be talking to him. If he gets too much advice from too many people, he might get confused.

Another topic of interest for me is the England wicketkeeping spot. The whispers I’ve heard are that Matt Prior is going to get the nod, but he has hardly scored a run this season. More important, I don’t think his glovework is up to Test standard. It could cost you if he drops a couple of crucial players.

I’m not biased, but I think Nic Pothas should be picked. He can bat at No 6, he’s a decent keeper and a tough cricketer. Paul Nixon also brings a lot to the table, but he’d have to bat lower. If England want Andrew Flintoff to drop down to No 7, Pothas should be their man. 

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