Young England player Shoaib Bashir says the surreal few months he endured after making his Test debut on the tour of India earlier this year are something he will cherish for a long time. Bashir will make his debut in the second game of the Somerset Championship season against Surrey after taking 17 wickets in his first three Tests for England and in Visakha. He made his debut in the second Test match at Putnam.

“This winter has been a great experience, starting with the Lions doing a two-week training camp in Abu Dhabi and then being called up to play for your country from there. It’s been a surreal few months for me Will cherish this experience. For a long time.”

“I was picked up from almost everywhere – Somerset came to me out of the blue and so did England. I’m so grateful for the opportunity and so grateful to God because without him none of this would have happened,” Bashir told BBC Point West.

His entry into India was initially delayed due to visa issues, but he eventually joined the team for the first Test in Hyderabad before making his debut in Visakhapatnam.

“It was special. I remember walking out and I was shaking – I was thinking, ‘I’m out there with Ben Stokes, Joe Root is here, this is the experience’.”

“I was nervous until I got the ball in my hands and then I felt at home. I’ve been playing cricket for many years and I knew in my mind that after I bowled the first ball, I Right up there,” he recalled.

Bashir was Somerset’s No. 12 for last week’s County Championship match against Kent but is keen to do well in the England Bowling Challenge after a strong performance in India.

“I’m still young and still learning the game. I’m really excited for what’s to come. I know bowling in county championship conditions in this rain is also part of the experience. I’m still working on developing my skills. “

“Bowling at different speeds, I need to work on different trajectories, but the pace also needs to change because the ball doesn’t spin as much as it does in India, so you have to beat the batsmen in a different way.”

Bashir was taken up by Somerset after being released by Surrey as a teenager, and although the team has experienced left-arm spinner Jack Leach, the young left-spinner is willing to go on loan to another club. team and get playing time for his team. Development as a young spin bowler.

“It’s not easy being a little kid and then being told you’re not good enough to do this. Stand up from that and know if you want something bad, you want to work hard for it, that’s what I did . As a cricketer, I really put in a lot of effort to improve myself and try to prove that.”

“It’s still a topic we’re working on. We know Leach is the main spinner here and I know it’s just trying to find a way to play some first-team cricket if that’s here or elsewhere. “There will have to be some discussion about that but if that’s the best way forward then I’m sure Somerset will be able to meet that requirement.”

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