London: Former England captain Nasser Hussain feels that seamer Saqib Mahmood has done enough in the second Test to show that he has enough skills to be successful at the international level for England and should not just be labelled as an overseas bowler.
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"Saqib Mahmood should be used for more than just away days after he proved he can be skilful as a traditional seamer for England during the second Test against the West Indies," Hussain wrote in his column for Daily Mail on Monday.
"Mahmood needs more exposure, and exposure at home to thrive for England. He shouldn't be described as a bowler to be used just in overseas conditions. Mahmood should not be labelled as a bowler to be exclusively used in overseas conditions just because he has some skills with the old ball and a slingy action," averred the 53-year-old Hussain. Stating how skilful Mahmood is Hussain said that he needs to be given more opportunities. "As we saw (in the second Test), he's handy with the new ball too... I noted how skilful he is as a traditional seamer. He pitched the ball up, got proper orthodox away swing and bowled a heavy ball," opined Hussain. "What we have seen this week is that he's definitely quick enough for Test cricket and that he was able to hit an unresponsive Kensington Oval pitch hard and get something out of it. He can hurry batters by hitting the splice of the bat despite things looking placid." "No doubt he will be disappointed with his wicket off the no-ball in the first innings, but he has shown he is someone that England should be persevering with. The lengths he produced on the final day in Bridgetown were excellent. Mahmood is someone the England hierarchy have kept their eye on for a long time. I remember talking to (former England coach) Chris Silverwood in New Zealand in late 2019 and he told me he liked the look of this lad."