table of contents
In a must-win match, when the opposition batsmen are scoring runs at a rapid pace, it is the duty of the bowlers to change the momentum by taking wickets.
After the first day of running 3third Young spinner Shoaib Bashir appeared as one of the weak links in England’s bowling line-up in the three-match Test series between England and New Zealand at Trent Bridge.
Dinesh Karthik and Kumar Sangakkara explain why Shoaib Bashir was less effective on the first day of England vs New Zealand 3rd Test
The home team’s frontline spinner has bowled 22 overs in the match so far, without taking any wickets, with an economy rate of 4.41 and only a few maiden overs. New Zealand’s opening pair, captain Tom Latham and Devon Conway, set the tone for the team, as Latham scored 151 and Conway scored 157.
Bashir’s pitch map tells a lot about how the batsmen scored easily against Shoaib Bashir. In the Sky Sports Cricket studio, former cricketers Dinesh Karthik and Kumar Sangakkara explain how the English spinner can improve his bowling in the match, and why he looked dangerous on day one.
Shoaib Bashir chose wrong length for bowling
As displayed on the pitch map screen, Bashir bowled only 47% of the balls at a good length. For Karthik, this is where the spinner made a mistake against the opposite batsmen. According to the former Team India keeper-batsman, on a pitch where there was nothing for the spinners, Shoaib Bashir should aim his arms round for a few more balls in the good length region.
“Sadly, that’s not the case. When you’re looking for control on a one-day pitch where the pitch isn’t giving you much, then if you’re only pulling 47%, which is just under three balls and above, that means you have three hitable balls per over,” explains Dinesh Karthik.
“Even though he started his first spell quite well, when the batsmen got set it was backhanded and then you needed more control, which he could not give. That is why his analysis is not as good as it should have been,” he said.
Dinesh Karthik asked Shoaib Bashir to improve his bowling style
Karthik felt that Bashir needed to work a little more on his bowling action as he did not have a good bowling hand. Right-arm spinner Shoaib Bashir, 22, is yet to master the technical part of his bowling action.
“Now, if I can just get to one technical point here of what he needs to do, he has a good run-up, a bit of pace, but his non-bowling arm, as a bowler you have a momentary pause, then use your non-bowling arm. Now this is a very underrated part of bowling, it gives you radar and direction, and that will help you with control,” Dinesh Karthik mentioned during his analysis. Did it.
“That’s not good enough for your frontline spinner!”
Kumar Sangakkara and Dinesh Karthik discuss Shoaib Bashir’s lack of control on the first day at Trent Bridge. pic.twitter.com/eZqifTS5Qu
– Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 26, 2026
England made a good start against New Zealand by winning the first Test at Lord’s. Then in the second match, without Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson, the home team lost the match, allowing the Blackcaps to level the score. Since both the teams have won one match each in the 3-match series so far, the ongoing third Test has become decisive in the contest.
