India had hammered New Zealand in their backyard. Virat Kohli had got runs, Ravichandran Ashwin had got wickets and Cheteshwar Pujara had shown just why he should be rated highly. It was over to the England tour with Alastair Cook’s team heading to the sub-continent having drawn a series with Bangladesh away.
India were in the middle of a long run of Test matches at home. As the opening game arrived against England at Rajkot, attention was focused towards a young 19-year-old Gujarati making his debut. Not for India, but for England.
A sparkling debut
The teenager Haseeb Hameed, a Gujarati by origin after a successful domestic season back home for Lancashire and helping them earn promotion, was drafted into the side to open alongside Alastair Cook who had been looking for a solid partner ever since Andrew Strauss’s retirement.
Hameed had scored 1,198 runs at an average of 49.91 with four centuries and seven fifties to his name in the domestic circuit and with Alex Hales pulling out, it was a moment to savour for young Hameed as he was rewarded with a national call-up. Though Bangladesh was his debut tour, it was only against India that Hameed made his debut.
Playing your first game against India and facing a quality bowling attack, it was certain there would be nerves. But the young Hameed showed anything but that.
Facing his first ball in Test cricket against a quality bowler in Mohammed Shami who consistently bowls at over 140 kilometre an hour, Hameed let the ball go perfectly without showing any signs of edginess. The ball was a little short and Hameed pulled his hands down to allow the ball hit the gloves of Wriddhiman Saha.
Playing for the team
The 19-year-old had a confident start where he showed great maturity and composure. Despite getting beaten by Ashwin continuously, Hameed would stand up tall and unperturbed to face the next ball. Though the youngster could not score many runs, but his 31 runs in 98 deliveries provided an account of what was to come.
As the pitch eased out and Hameed got a better taste of international cricket, the Lancashire batsman scored a fine 82 where he was out caught, while looking to score quick runs. Doing something that incredible on debut just as you are chasing your 100, shows signs of promise.
Though the Test ended in a draw, England ended the game on top with the biggest positive for them being the performance and attitude of Hameed. Since Strauss’s retirement, Hameed turned out to be Cook’s 10th partner and the hope of an 11th being far away looked bright.
‘Baby Boycott’
Haseeb Hameed looked like a proper Test opener and one that had a good sense of judgment in addition to getting the technical aspects such as the head, feet and hands alignment and the bat and pad being close together. He knew what to do with each kind of ball and never really looked not having a clue. The youngster did not get carried away and made his debut count.
While a lot of England players fail to play spin well, Hameed seemed to have cracked the code early. Playing on Indian wickets for the first time, the Lancashire batsman got his technique and strategy spot on, playing the ball ahead of his bat unlike most of the other English players. This helped him bat long and put the pressure back on to the Indian side.
Being a self-taught cricketer, it was Haseeb’s dad Ismail who taught him the basics of the cricket from early on. Inspired by Geoffrey Boycott, Ismail taught Haseeb to play his way but claimed his boy is much more than that.
“’Haseeb is a batsman of a new era – a mix of Geoff Boycott and players like Mohammad Azharuddin and Joe Root because he has a lot of shots,” said Ismail Hameed. “When the time comes, you will see he has really good shots as well. When he defends, he is like a ‘Baby Boycott’. But when he plays shots, he is like somebody else.”
In the next match at Visakhapatnam, Hameed looked impressive again. Unperturbed by the lack of runs or the pace of scoring, Hameed applied himself on the wicket and batted for long hours. Though his scores read 13 and 25, he played 50 and 144 balls respectively, batting for over five hours in the game.
But it was as late as the second innings of the third Test in Mohali that Ismail Hameed’s words looked true and the 19-year-old cemented his position as England opener for a long time to come.
Having been hit on one of the fingers in the first innings by Umesh Yadav which also saw him get out, Haseeb could not field and did not open the batting for England in the second innings at Mohali. He only came in at No. 8.
The 19-year-old played patiently as the wickets kept tumbling at the other end. With England nine down and not many on the board, Hameed showed another side of his game that not many expected. He started playing his shots and looked ever-so-comfortable against spin and pace alike. He hit Ashwin Jadeja and Shami for boundaries and accumulated some quick runs for the English.
While it was pleasing to see him apply himself when needed and play his shots when the situation demanded, it was his mental strength, confidence and composure that stole the limelight. Hameed had just not scored a 50 but gave England an answer to their opening woes for years to come.