Fast bowler Saqib Mahmood admitted he was still wrapping his head around an unexpected England recall as he reflected back at an “out of the blue” recall after taking his team to an easy win in the first ODI of the three-match ODI series against Pakistan in Cardiff on Thursday (July 8).
The 24-year-old pacer – who hasn’t played for England since September 2020 – bowled with pace throughout, hitting a good length, and his clinical bowling performance has won him the Player of the Match award, as well as, an emphatic 9-wicket victory for the hosts against Pakistan in Cardiff.
Playing in only his fourth ODI, Mahmood picked up two wickets in his first three balls to give a second-string England a near-perfect start against Pakistan.
He then managed two more wickets to return with impressive figures of 4/42 to help a depleted and inexperienced England restrict near full-strength Pakistan to 141 inside 36 overs on Thursday in Cardiff.
Chasing the total, Dawid Malan (68*) and Zak Crawley (58*) guided England to an easy victory in 28.1 overs with more than half the innings remaining against Pakistan on Thursday. With a 9-wicket win in the first ODI, England took a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series against Pakistan with the second ODI to be held at Lord's on June 10 (Saturday) and the finale on July 13.
Mahmood told reporters after the first ODI in Cardiff: “I got the call on Tuesday, it was completely out of the blue. “I woke up with a missed call off Spoons (England head coach Chris Silverwood) and a message saying, ‘text me when you see this’.”
He added, “I started the morning in Manchester and ended up in Cardiff. I guess the fact it all happened so quickly and there was less time to train was better than obsessing over your skills a little bit.”
Meanwhile, Mahmood said the message from England’s stand-in captain Ben Stokes, who also himself rushed back from a finger operation to lead the side, has helped the inexperienced hosts fill them with a lot of confidence and win the game against Pakistan.
He recalled, “I guess the message we've had, something Stokes reiterated last night after training was, 'yes, it is weird circumstances, but at this given time, everyone here deserves their place and everyone here is the best player for that position that they're in,'. I think the message that Stokesy gave the boys should help fill them with a lot of confidence - given it is weird circumstances - that everyone deserves to be here. That's the message we've had.”
The pacer added, “Everyone here is the best player for the position they’re in. I always thrive in whatever team I play for when I’ve got that extra responsibility. Speaking to Stokesy, I knew he wanted me to take the new ball and when we were out there, he brought me on when we needed wickets. I’m just glad I was able to back it up and make the most of that responsibility.”
On the other hand, Stokes warned his team by saying: “Something like today is a massive boost, but we do need to keep in mind that we weren’t put under any pressure and I’ve got no doubt that we will at some point.”
While Pakistan captain Babar Azam lamented the fact that the tourists lost wickets cheaply while crediting the England pacers for their stunning efforts after 9 wickets loss in the first ODI.
Babar signed off by saying, “We lost early wickets and that’s why we didn’t go to a big total but credit to the England bowlers. We are looking forward to Lord’s and we’ll try our level best.”
(With AFP Inputs)
