England call upon uncapped Shoaib Bashir in hope that the 6ft 4in bowler can help them leave India in a spin, with Brendon McCullum’s side backing the 20-year-old to become their next world-class spinner

England will throw a bowler with just six first-class matches to his name into the cauldron of a Test tour of India and back him to become their next world-class spinner.

Shoaib Bashir, at 20 and on his way to Somerset after being released by his native Surrey at 17, joins the returning Jack Leach, teenager Rehan Ahmed and another uncapped slow bowler in Tom Hartley in a spin attack focused on promise rather than performance.

It's a point based on the fact that England believe that Bashir, with just 10 red-ball wickets to his name, has something about him that marks him as potentially special and can help England take on India at home game and on their home field in the next match. month five-Test series.

“I think we've probably only had one world-class spinner since the uncovered pitches and that's Graeme Swann,” England general manager Rob Key said after naming a 16-man squad for one of the toughest assignments in Test cricket.

“We hope that Shoaib can eventually become world class and we are trying to put him on that path. He certainly has the potential. He has everything you want to see in an off-spinner. A bit of real craftsmanship, a bit of real trickery and decent character too. His ceiling is very high.”

At 6ft 4in, Bashir is one of a handful of uncapped players included in the squad after taking ten wickets in the County Championship last season.

He will be joined by fellow bowler Tom Hartley, who took 18 wickets for Lancashire last season

Mail Sport reported in September that England were looking at both Bashir and Hartley for this tour, not least because they believe both have the attributes to succeed in India.

Now they are preferred over the experienced Liam Dawson despite his excellent performances last summer, Will Jacks, who has been cleared to concentrate on T20 cricket, and Sussex's Jack Carson, who impressed during the Lions' recent training camp in the UAE.

Hartley, at 24, also has a modest first-class record, with 18 Championship wickets last season for Lancashire, but England see him, at 6ft 4in, as having the ability to copy India's Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel and get the ball to shoot in rotating fields. at a decent pace.

England have selected both Bashir and Ahmed, who possess very different attributes as bowlers

Bashir is also 6ft tall, bowls faster than the average big-handed spinner and has one of the highest release points in the game, according to Key.

But it is 19-year-old leg-spinner Ahmed who will surely feature in the first Test in Hyderabad on January 25, ahead of both newcomers and alongside 'leader of the attack' Leach, who returns after proving his fitness in the UAE following a stress fracture from the back.

“I watched Rehan in the one-day series in the West Indies and his development was extraordinary,” Key said in Barbados, where England started their T20 series on Saturday. “I'm so excited to see him go about his business.

'When the pressure is greatest, Rehan gets the ball and that is a great honor for him. Look at it from this side. If it's the last day of a game and you have to bowl a side trying to block for a draw, who do you want to bowl? I'll take Rehan Ahmed.'

Surrey's Gus Atkinson is the third uncapped Test-level player in the squad and joins Mark Wood as additional fast bowlers alongside Jimmy Anderson and Ollie Robinson, who heads to India with something to prove after a disrupted summer with both England and Sussex.

Chris Woakes is the most notable absentee from bowling following the retirement of Stuart Broad, with Key insisting there will be plenty to see of him in England next summer.

Ben Stokes will unfortunately not feature in England's bowling ranks, with Key revealing the India captain will be unable to roll his arm following surgery on his chronic left knee.

Stokes is of course well worth his place for his batting and the leadership that inspired the Bazball revolution, but his continued inability to play as a true all-rounder will once again affect the balance of the side.

“The operation was a success and we are confident Ben will be able to play, but we never got him to bowl in India,” Key said. 'It's something you have to do slowly.

Speaking about Bashir's selection, England general manager Rob Key claimed that the side 'hoped the spinner can become world-class' as they prepare for a challenging tour of India.

But it is 19-year-old leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed who will leave for England on January 25.

Ben Stokes will not be available for selection as he looks to recover from a chronic knee injury

“It actually makes the selection easier because the frustration comes when you don't know whether Ben is going to bowl or not. It's never easy for Ben, but if we have clarity on what he can and can't do, we can balance the party accordingly.”

What it does do is make it harder for England to get goalkeeper Ben Foakes back into the team. Foakes was excellent during the Covid-affected 2021 India tour, in which England lost 3-1 but face a battle to get the gloves back from Jonny Bairstow.

This will be the toughest test yet for the Stokes and Brendon McCullum Test revolution after an epically drawn Ashes series last summer and the general manager is under no illusions about the scale of England's task.

“There's no doubt this is one of the toughest series a team can have, but it's also an opportunity to do something great,” Key said. “It's going to be hard, but I'm really looking forward to it.”