Michael Vaughan calls Shoaib Bashir the 'new Ashwin' after impressive display in Ranchi

Former England captain Michael Vaughan has spoken highly of Shoaib Bashir, who was impressive in the recently concluded fourth Test against India. In a country where spinners have mostly dominated red-ball cricket, England have bestowed the responsibility of the department upon two inexperienced youngsters in the ongoing series. Tom Hartley, a 24-year-old left-arm spinner, made a roaring debut in the opening Hyderabad fixture, claiming nine wickets across innings.

In the next game in Vizag, another off-spinner, Bashir first time donned the whites for England and picked four wickets. He did not feature in the third Rajkot Test, with the visitors opting for a two-man spin attack featuring Hartley and Rehan Ahmed. When he was recalled in the following game, Bashir stole the show on the sluggish Ranchi wicket. England might have suffered a defeat in the match but the 20-year-old was able to trouble the hosts in the fourth innings.

While India had to chase down a target of 192 runs, their middle order surrendered early in front of Bashir. He scalped three wickets in quick succession. Bashir sent off Rajat Patidar and Sarfaraz Khan for a duck and also took the crucial wicket of Ravindra Jadeja. Bashir claimed a five-wicket haul in the first innings of the Ranchi Test.

Though England ended up losing the game, Vaughan feels Bashir’s remarkable performance is something that should be celebrated. Speaking on Club Prairie Fire’s YouTube channel , the cricketer-turned-pundit labelled the young bowler as the new Ravichandran Ashwin, the legendary Indian spinner who has completed 500 Test wickets in this series.

“It’s been a fantastic week for English cricket. One of the great weeks, celebrating another world-class superstar that we’ve unearthed, Shoaib Bashir. That’s what we’re celebrating. Second Test match, he took eight wickets, he’s the new Ravi Ashwin, and we’ve unearthed him. So, we’re celebrating a new superstar in English cricket,” Vaughan said.

India might have already clinched the victory in the series but Vaughan feels, the upcoming fifth Test in Dharmashala will see a neck-and-neck battle. “I think it’s going to be a fresh one in Dharamsala, so I expect England to win. They’ve been the better team in the series, as they were in the Ashes. If you go session by session, England have looked like a better team. I’m saying looked a better team, but we don’t play series now to win them.”

Following back-to-back wins in the last three matches, India will look to continue their dominance in the final Test of the series, commencing on March 7 at the HPCA Stadium.