England leg-spinner Adil Rashid says he would consider a return to red-ball cricket at the end of the summer.
The 32-year-old was part of the England team that won the World Cup but has not played Test cricket since January 2019 because of a shoulder injury.
He is only due to play limited-overs cricket for Yorkshire this season.
“Once September comes, if my shoulder is 100% and I feel I can get back into red-ball, that is something I would consider,” he said.
Rashid initially opted to focus on white-ball cricket at the beginning of 2018, only to receive a controversial call-up to play in England’s Test series against India later that summer.
He went on to play in nine consecutive England Tests, culminating with the tour of the West Indies at the beginning of last year, but has not played a County Championship match for Yorkshire since 2017.
Rashid had injections in his shoulder during the World Cup and played in every match of England’s victorious campaign. He subsequently missed the remainder of the home season and returned to action in England’s winter tours.
If he made himself available, it could bolster England’s spin-bowling options for the five-Test tour of India in the early part of 2021, as well as a potential re-scheduled tour of Sri Lanka, which was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Rashid also discussed the possibility of being on the next Ashes tour, with England due to tour Australia at the end of 2021.
“After the end of this year it’s about me sitting down and actually thinking about that decision again of playing red-ball or white-ball,” he said.
“If I don’t make that decision of playing red-ball and just sticking to white-ball then there’s no Ashes for me.
“But if I do make that decision and I play red-ball, then that’s something that I could look towards. It’s something that I’ve got to earn.”
Rashid has formed a successful partnership in limited-overs cricket with fellow spinner Moeen Ali.
Off-spinner Moeen made himself unavailable for Test cricket after being dropped following the first Ashes Test last summer, saying he felt “burned-out”.
However, the 32-year-old has told the Guardian that he now feels ready to return to the longest form of the game.
“If there was a Test match tomorrow and I got the call, I’d say ‘yes’,” said Moeen, who has taken 181 wickets in 60 Tests.
And Rashid believes England will consider Moeen for an immediate recall if any Test cricket is able to be played in the home summer.
“He’s a world-class player,” said Rashid. “He’s proven that over the past four or five years, being a match-winner for England.
“If there is going to be any cricket played this summer, I’m sure that he would have to be a name mentioned by England as a candidate. Test cricket is something that he’ll come back into.”
Article courtesy of BBC Sport
Source link
