Shaun Tait: “I think at his age now, early 20s, he is probably the best, and it is a big call, but I am going to say he is nearly the best fast bowler I have ever seen at that age”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Shaun Tait, the former Pakistan bowling coach, crowned Naseem Shah as the “best fast bowler I have ever seen” at the age of 20 even though he knows “it is a big call.”
Naseem started his international career only playing Test cricket, but after an impressive start in the longest format, he was given the chance to show what he can do in ODIs and T20Is.
The speedster grabbed the opportunity with both hands and made an immediate impact, which resulted in him cementing his spot across all three formats.
“I think at his age now, early 20s, he is probably the best, and it is a big call, but I am going to say he is nearly the best fast bowler I have ever seen at that age,” Tait told respected journalist Saj Sadiq as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.
Naseem recently picked up nine wickets in two Test matches against Sri Lanka at an average of 23.
He then proceeded to play two ODIs against Afghanistan, where he took two wickets at an average of 28.50.
Most recently, he represented Pakistan in the Asia Cup, where he claimed seven wickets in four games at an average of 20.
Pakistan were in good form in the tournament as they started off with a 238-run win over Nepal before sharing one point apiece with India as their match was rained off.
Heading into the Super Four stage, they beat Bangladesh by seven wickets before losing to India by 228 runs. To make matters worse, Naseem suffered an injury to his bowling shoulder during the game.
Pakistan had the chance to qualify for the Asia Cup final, but failed to do so as they lost to Sri Lanka by two wickets via the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern method (DLS) method.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 Asia Cup:Â Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Haris (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Shahnawaz Dahani, Zaman Khan.
Travelling reserve: Tayyab Tahir