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England spinner Shoaib Bashir has responded to recent comments from Australian veteran Nathan Lyon, stating he is not bothered and has great respect for Lyon's skills.
Shoaib Bashir reacts to Nathan Lyon's 'okay' remark
Lyon had previously described Bashir's performance against India as 'okay' while praising Jack Leach as England's best spinner. Bashir is currently recuperating from a hand injury he sustained during the third Test of the series at Lord's. Despite facing pitches that were not favorable for spin bowling, Bashir managed to take 10 wickets in six innings at an average of 54.10. His most notable contribution came at Lord's, where, despite his injured hand, he bowled the delivery that took the final wicket of Mohammed Siraj, securing a victory for England.
“Everyone has their own opinions and that’s fine. I just stick to what I believe and what the people around me believe. I don’t really look at that stuff," Bashir told the PA news agency.
“I’ve never crossed paths with him (Lyon) but I have been watching him since I was young. I do enjoy the way he bowls, especially his overspin, it’s a great asset he has, and the amount of revs he puts on the ball. He’s someone I’ve been looking at for a while now," Bashir added.
English spinner Shoaib Bashir and Australian veteran Nathan Lyon are likely to face each other when England tours Australia for the 2025-26 Ashes series later this year. Bashir has emerged as England's preferred spinner, largely due to his height and varied bowling, which are expected to be effective on Australian pitches. Although there were some concerns about his form during the recent Test series in England, his replacement, Liam Dawson, who played in the final two Tests after Jack Leach was overlooked, did not perform well enough to challenge Bashir's position.
Despite his current standing as a first-choice spinner, Bashir has yet to play a Test match in Australia. He did, however, represent England Lions in five matches there in 2024, taking four wickets. Bashir has stated that he is determined to apply what he learned from that experience and improve his performance for the upcoming series.
“I learned you do get bounce but you’ve got to find a way to use that. I’ve got height but there’s more than just height to extract bounce from the wicket. Just small technical things. It’s just (about) nailing what I do best. If you look at my attributes – I’m tall and try to put as many revs on the ball as I can, with that comes variations. I’m still learning, still quite young, I’m still trying develop my game and better myself day-by-day. That will never stop. I love talking about the game and I love learning," he concluded.
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