He Has Unbelievable Desire To Get Better: Ben Stokes Praises Shoaib Bashir's Performance In 2nd ENG-WI Test

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Shoaib Bashir, who made his Test debut against India in Vizag earlier this year, dismissed five Windies batters for 41 runs in the second innings of the 2nd Test in Nottingham.

England’s Test captain Ben Stokes has reserved big praise for young spinner Shoaib Bashir after the 20-year-old picked up a five-wicket haul in the second innings of the second Test between England and the West Indies in Nottingham on Sunday (July 21). Bashir, who made his Test debut for England earlier this year against India in Visakhapatnam, finished with figures of 5 for 41 in 11.1 overs during the second innings to help England get the better of the West Indies by 241 runs and go 2-0 up in the ongoing three-match series at home.

Impressed by Bashir’s super show, Stokes praised the youngster and said that he has an unbelieveable desire to get better. According to him, with his performance in the Nottingham Test, Bashir has shown the world what he can do.

“He has got so much talent, and he’s got an unbelievable desire to get better,” Stokes said of Bashir. “His intent is to always take wickets and never just to hold an end up. It’s really good for a young guy to put in a performance that wins England a Test. He was pretty emotional at the end. It’s a pretty cool day for him. He has shown the world what he can do.”

By taking a five-wicket haul on Sunday, Bashir became the first spinner since Muttiah Muralitharan (in 2006) to take a five-wicket in a Test match played at Trent Bridge. The right-arm offbreak bowler also becomes the first-ever English spinner aged under 21 years to take a 5-wicket haul in a Test match on home soil.

“The decisions we make are all based around not only how far we think talent can take a player, but if we think they’re good enough for international cricket straight away,” Stokes said after Bashir’s efforts in Trent Bridge after not getting a bowl at Lord’s.

“Bash showed what he could do in India with conditions in his favour, but the pitch this week didn’t really offer much for spin, and he has taken seven wickets in the match. The ability he had to be able to change his pace, change his line, and manipulate how he wanted the ball to react out of the surface was top-class. I don’t want to sound like it’s an ‘I told you so’ kind of thing, but it sort of is.”