With temperament, age and an undeniable talent on his side, Haseeb Hameed is a man who is only on the way up according to former England batsman Jonathan Trott.
A stunning maiden first-class season from Bolton’s Lancashire opener propelled him to the heights of international cricket last winter, making a Test debut against India in his bid for cricket stardom.
And despite taking to the pitch in tough Asian conditions, Hameed far from let himself down at the top of the order.
A debut 82 aided the now 20-year-old’s cause, expected to still be part of the squad when South Africa come to England in July, though life back in the County Championship has been far from easy.
Hameed has struggled for a score thus far but Trott, a veteran of more than 120 international appearances, is convinced this is only just the beginning for the youngster, so long as he can keep his cricket ducks in a row.
“Straight away when you see a teenager come in and play exactly like they have at county cricket, it is impressive, he doesn’t try to change his game or do anything differently to impress anyone,” said Trott at the launch of the Royal London One-Day Cup.
NOT INTIMIDATED: Ex-England batsman Trott (far right), at the launch of the Royal London One-Day Cup, said Haseeb Hameed has that special ingredient to make it
“He’s doing well with his body language and his persona too having spoken to some of the guys around the setup – he’s not intimidated by the international stage and that’s fantastic.
“That suggests that he could go on and have a very long career and hopefully he does that.
“It’s not something you can develop – you either have it or you don’t. There’s a certain self-confidence about being able to hack it at that level and you need the belief on your own ability.”
Hameed’s style has been perceived as not dissimilar to that of Trott, with both enjoying playing the long game in both four and five-day cricket.
But, with the Royal London One-Day Cup starting this week, Hameed’s next task will be trying to force his way into the Lancashire limited-overs squad.
And while he may have not the explosive nature of teammate Jos Buttler, Trott believes he has more than done enough for the selectors to be convinced of his abilities, in Test cricket at least.
He added: “At such a young age he’s become a very impressive player, he looks very assured at international cricket which is fantastic for him.
Incredible getting to spend time with my childhood inspiration, the genius @sachin_rt #TheMaster pic.twitter.com/JDbzExfJ7F
— Haseeb Hameed (@HaseebHameed97) December 13, 2016
“For England he’s really staked his claim at the top of the order, and now they’ve got to work out who’s going to bat at three which is potentially a nice problem to have.
“England have got combinations to work with now and that’s what he and Keaton Jennings have helped do, they’ve got Alastair Cook and Joe Root up in that top four so some very good players there.”
As proud sponsors of the One Day Cup, Royal London is giving away match tickets to see the action live. Visit royallondoncricket.com to enter.
