As the one enforced change in England’s XI for the hotly anticipated fourth Test against India at Old Trafford this week, Liam Dawson replacing the injured Shoaib Bashir represents a 180-degree turn on pretty much every metric.
Bashir has been the long-term investment this past year: a 6ft 4in right-arm off-spinner who, aged 21, struggles to get a look-in at Somerset and has instead been honing his craft at the highest level. His ceiling is fancied to be higher than his towering release point, even if he is a No 11 with the bat and a competent fielder at best.
Dawson sits at the other end of more than one spectrum: a 5ft 8in left-arm spinner who, aged 35, has banked 206 first-class games for Hampshire. This recall, eight years after the last of his three Test caps, also offers England greater flexibility when it comes to picking their seam attack. Dawson, who is a livewire in the field, can slot in at No 8 comfortably given he has 18 first-class hundreds. However, for Jeetan Patel, the assistant coach who oversees England’s spinners, this switch is a pragmatic pick that rewards a seasoned pro in Dawson. As for where it leads when everyone is fit and available, not least next winter’s Ashes tour, the mantra under Brendon McCullum, the head coach, is that things will work themselves out.
“Speaking to Daws, he is fizzing,” Patel says. “I know what it is like when you think the opportunity has gone. To still be wanted and loved, and to come into a major series 2-1 up with a chance to win it, there really is no better feeling. He showed all his skills in the white-ball series against West Indies earlier in the summer – bowling wide, tight, pace on, pace off – and I think he will grow again. He’s not a one-dimensional left-armer who just lands it on a length and it is pretty clear how we play: we’re not too worried about runs, we want players who win moments.
“So we should be able to plug-and-play with Daws. He has all the tools and there has also been more rough for the left-arm spinners to work with this series. Who knows what comes from it but I think it is an excellent selection and an opportunity for him.”
With Dawson’s bowling maturing in the past two and a half seasons, returning 124 championship wickets, he will need much less guidance than Bashir and brings a thicker tactical playbook to the table. However, this is not a sign that England’s belief in the Bashir project is wavering, with the youngster having already claimed 68 wickets from his first 19 Test outings and Patel heavily involved in his development.
If anything, Bashir left Lord’s last Monday with his reputation only enhanced. Having sustained a broken finger on his left hand on the third day of the second Test – Ravindra Jadeja smashing the ball back for a tough return chance – Bashir still emerged with the bat, bravely helping to add seven useful runs for the 10th wicket in what became a tight game. Then came that chef’s kiss of a final wicket, Mohammed Siraj bowled playing on to complete a tense 22-run victory.
“Absolutely not,” Patel says, when asked if Bashir’s injury spared them a tough selection issue. “I think he has bowled excellently this summer and without much assistance, against some of the best players of spin in the world. It hasn’t ragged and there has been no bounce. But he has held his own and struck at key moments, like nicking off KL Rahul just after his century and when he looked so set.
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“Bash is a tough cookie. That moment at the end gave everyone a warm fuzzy feeling because it just showed his commitment to the group. Other guys might have stayed in the dressing room but he was just desperate to contribute. Even when he first came off he was just angry at missing the chance and, despite being in serious pain, his only thought was getting back out there. It is such a shame but he will be back.”
Getting back out there now involves a minimum wait of six weeks, with Bashir having had a wire splint inserted this week to help correct multiple fractures. The good news, however, is that he will be able to resume bowling sooner and should be up to speed to play in the County Championship in September – if Somerset select him. Jack Leach and the more all-round Archie Vaughan are preferred at Taunton these days, with Bashir set to leave when his contract expires in October. His England central contract – almost certain to be renewed – makes him an attractive signing, however, with Warwickshire and Surrey among those thought to be interested.
For now, though, it is Dawson who walks out into the Test spotlight in Manchester: a late second crack at the format he doubtless thought had passed him by and one that, if it goes well, could give India and England plenty to think about.
