“Personally I want to play all three formats,” says Naseem Shah
After accepting that the 19-year-old Naseem Shah leads Pakistan’s speed assault in all three forms after just playing his first white-ball game a few months ago, what is more delightfully unexpected is how the man thinks, communicates, and carries himself off the field.
Pakistan bowling coach Shaun Tait recently stated that Naseem has “a mind on his shoulders that’s way beyond his years” in an interview released recently. Tait’s assessment appeared pretty true when the young pacer spoke at a promotional event for a business he’s sponsoring here on Wednesday.
Thank you, #Quetta for the warm welcome and for supporting @TeamQuetta today.
It was a wonderful experience playing in the Bugti Stadium in front of thousands of fans. #QGvsPZ pic.twitter.com/TFBOSV9gK8
— Naseem Shah (@iNaseemShah) February 5, 2023
The youth has established as an idol for Pakistan fans, particularly after leading the national side’s speed assault from the front in last year’s Asia Cup, when he struck two winning sixes to end a thriller against Afghanistan.
However, Naseem is more than his boyish appearance and humour, which enlivened the session. A back ailment that sidelined him for six months just before he was set to make it big after leaving his hometown of Lower Dir to attend a cricket school in Lahore exemplified the mental fortitude and emotional acuity he has developed in only a few short years as a professional cricketer.
Honored to be appointed as the Goodwill Ambassador of Balochistan Police. #BalochistanPolice pic.twitter.com/hFlZZ3IKNG
— Naseem Shah (@iNaseemShah) February 4, 2023
“I kept showing up at the academy regularly and eventually got picked for the U-16s and U-19s before being named in the Pakistan squad for the Emerging Teams Asia Cup,” explained the fast bowler. “I was also in contention for the National T20 Cup and the PSL when I experienced pain in my back while bowling in a practice match. We got the CT scan done after which it emerged that I had three fractures in my back and I was asked to stop playing for six months. All of a sudden it felt like my life was over. At that moment I thought: ‘This was my time to do everything that I wanted to’,” he added.
During his debut tour for Pakistan in Australia, when he learned the news of his mother’s passing, Naseem exhibited extraordinary mental fortitude. Despite being given a severe emotional blow, the adolescent made his international debut days later.
Good Bye Bangladesh! ✈️
It was an amazing experience playing BPL for the first time, enjoyed every moment of it.
Good Luck @comilla_v_bd for the upcoming matches🏏
See you all soon… #BPL2023 #Bangladesh pic.twitter.com/owR5liGtBj
— Naseem Shah (@iNaseemShah) February 2, 2023
The pacer’s next appearance will be in the upcoming HBL Pakistan Super League, when he will spearhead the Quetta Gladiators attack.
“Each wicket at the PSL will be mean valuable to me,” he said. “Over there, no one cares how good you look,” he stated. “All that matters is bowling in the right areas.”
Last year, Naseem was unable to play in some of Pakistan’s most significant games, including the home Test series against England. As the attack’s leader, the pacer has had little rest since September of last year.
Here I go again…✈️
En route to Bangladesh to join Comilla Victorians in BPL. pic.twitter.com/XLRG8brHft
— Naseem Shah (@iNaseemShah) January 21, 2023
Before too much cricket taxed Naseem’s physique, Pakistan had already been hampered by the absence of his senior partner, Shaheen Shah Afridi.
“We’ve talked about this with the management and we are trying to find ways of managing workload,” he concluded. “Personally I want to play all three formats but we can consider solutions like skipping a T20 or two to prepare for a Test series. However, how we can go about it is still being pondered on and I hope it helps us be better.”
