Shoaib Bashir on fast track as Ashes mission begins in earnest

The last time Shoaib Bashir was in Australia, he was turning out for Lindfield Cricket Club in the Sydney suburbs during the 2022-23 season.

Two years on, he is back with the Lions as England's first-choice spinner, embarking on a fact-finding mission ahead of next winter's Ashes. For those familiar with Sydney's cricket system, that alone gives an indication of Bashir's remarkable rise.

Lindfield play in the Shires Competition, which runs parallel to Sydney's more vaunted Grade Competition. The club's own website states that Shires First Grade "is equivalent in standard to play conducted in SCA Second Grade Cricket". As such, there was great pride at Bashir's ascension to Test cricket a year later. Three of his Lindfield clubmates hot-footed it to Visakhapatnam to witness his debut against India.

The Lions tour culminates in Sydney with a four-day unofficial Test against Australia A, and Bashir intends to drop in to see a few old friends. "I will try and try and get down there, give the boys a bit of a surprise" he tells ESPNcricinfo from Brisbane, where the squad are based for their first two matches against a Cricket Australia XI. His fondness for the club remains strong. Even for the borrowed Saab that occasionally left him in the lurch.

"There was a club car that I had and I reckon it broke down on me about five times.

"One particular time, I was driving on like a dual carriageway and [the car] slowed down and down, with cars behind me and everything - it was just a nightmare. But it was good times, good memories."

It is fair to say 2024 featured no such hindrance. Bashir sat exclusively in the fast lane as he notched 15 Test caps across the year, with 49 wickets - more than any other spinner in the world - including three five-wicket hauls. He overtook Somerset team-mate Jack Leach as England's primary spinner, despite the county plumping for the left-armer as their No.1, and clocked a staggering 524.3 overs at the top level in what was essentially his second full year as a professional. All of this emanated from a social media clip that piqued the interest of Test captain Ben Stokes.

"It has been pretty surreal," says Bashir. "Obviously I'm very, very grateful for what happened."

There was not much time to dissect it all. He spent barely 10 days at home over the Christmas period between returning from New Zealand (his fifth series in 11 months) and heading back across the globe on January 3. But there was enough room for reflection.

"I did go through a few memories in the old book - looking back to my cap presentation (from Leach) and that video of me getting Rohit Sharma out as my first wicket (caught around the corner at leg slip) was a massive highlight. I've watched that many times.

"Taking my first five-for (5 for 119 in his second appearance at Ranchi). Every series, every game, every innings. Playing Test cricket for England, it doesn't get any better than that. That's one thing I try and remind myself is that I'm playing for England, so just enjoy every moment, you know?"

That enjoyment has been abundantly clear in this first stanza of Bashir's international career. So, too, the talent England are investing in and the rawness of a spinner learning on the front line.

Bowling England to victory with 5 for 41 against West Indies - the first spinner in 18 years to take as many at Trent Bridge - along with four on day one of the first Test against New Zealand at Hagley Oval were nods to the former. Cues to the latter, such as a lack of control and no apparent go-to stock ball have been littered throughout. They were particularly apparent in series at home to Sri Lanka (six dismissals at 49.33) and away in Pakistan (nine at 49.55 despite spin-friendly conditions for the final two matches).

The culmination of the Crowe-Thrope trophy was similarly difficult, albeit in seaming conditions. After 4 for 69 from 20 overs on the opening day of the series, he was 4 for 345 from 67 overs for the remainder.

Head coach Brendon McCullum made a note of lauding the 21-year-old as a "tough kid" during his post-tour media briefing, ceding "the statistical element, it doesn't read great". Both he and Stokes have pushed Bashir to see beyond the stats. They will be buoyed to hear his current average of 40.16 does not bother him.

"To be honest, not really," he says when asked if that number jars. "I feel like stats played a huge part when I was growing up, and that was how you are selected. But it's seen differently within this team." Spoken like a player who earned his first call-up despite averaging 67 from just six first-class games.

"I'm 21 years old, right? I'm still learning. I've only played professional cricket for about, what, two or three years? It's just a work in progress."

Yet the motivation to lower that number is clear. Work around game-time - even ahead of a day's play - has been a prominent feature of his time as a Test cricketer. Over the coming weeks, the guidance of England assistant coach Jeetan Patel will be replaced by Graeme Swann, reprising a relationship struck up on a previous Lions camp in 2023 which rubber-stamped that maiden call-up for the India tour.

Bashir appreciates the need to hone his skills quickly, particularly an ability to hold up an end given England do not tour Asia again until their visit to Bangladesh in February 2027. Maintaining a threat while stemming the run flow, to allow the quicks a chance to catch their breath, is now top of the agenda. It is a trait spinners groove with experience.

"I think it's something I've got better at and am still working on," he says of the job.

"I'm still looking to take wickets, but that might be in the form of caught, caught at midwicket or caught at mid on instead of bowled through the gate. It's like a game of chess, just trying to figure out what the batsman wants and shut down his options."