It might be pushing it to think Adil Rashid can top the year he enjoyed in 2018 but the Bradford-born leg spinner certainly has high hopes ahead of a summer that includes the Cricket World Cup in England, the Ashes and a big domestic season for Yorkshire.
A smile immediately lights up Rashid’s face when I mention that delivery to Virat Kohli last summer, the one in a ODI match against India at Headingley that pitched outside leg-stump before ripping past the best batsman on the planet to take out his off-stump.
That same delivery was the one that took Rashid from white-ball specialist to England’s frontline spinner for the forthcoming Test series against India and then booked his place on the winter tour of Sri Lanka.
Rashid returns to Headingley on Tuesday to begin his 2019 season in the Royal London One-Day Cup for Yorkshire and he is relishing the prospect of playing for the White Rose again.
Rashid told Sporting Life: “I’m looking forward to getting out there and representing Yorkshire again.
“It will be nice to get out there and do some bowling, hopefully get some wins and just have fun.”
With England’s next Test match against Ireland not taking place until July, closely followed by the Ashes, Rashid is hoping to get back into the groove in domestic cricket before his attention will then turn to the Cricket World Cup, for which the host nation are currently the 9/4 market leaders following a tremendous run of form in ODI cricket.
England tested their mettle for the World Cup when beating India 2-1 in a high-quality series at home last summer with Rashid proving his worth once again - the spinner taking six wickets at 24.83 - and another series win over the West Indies more recently tees them up perfectly for a World Cup bid, one which Rashid insists he and his colleagues are relishing.
He said: “I’m excited, I think we’re all excited – all the England team and the England supporters.
“It’s a big summer ahead but we know it’s going to be tough as well.
“It’s not going to be easy, it’s going to be tough work, but we’ve just got to go out there and keep doing what we’ve been doing for the past three to four years, have that positive mindset, try and execute our skills and have some fun.
“This isn’t a one-man team, we’ve got eleven men so we don’t depend on any one individual.”
On the subject of having a positive mindset, Rashid was in no mood to downplay the role England captain Eoin Morgan has had on his own career and the strong returns he has enjoyed over the past 18 months.
Rashid added: “He’s [Morgan] been massive for me. He’s been a big influence on me playing One-Day cricket.
“We sat down and had a discussion on what’s the best way for me to bowl, how is he going to use me and what my role is within the team.
“All that is clarified before I go out to bowl which gives me the confidence of knowing what my job is for the team and that’s not just me, it’s the same for all the bowlers. They all know their job within the side.
“Morgs gives great confidence to all the guys, the batters and the bowlers. He’s a great leader.”
On a bitterly cold day in Leeds, the British summer still seems a long way away and for spinners up and down the country, this doesn’t seem like a time when they should thrive.
Nevertheless, Rashid is clearly determined to make his mark for Yorkshire and England in the coming months.
He added: “Whoever I play for, England or Yorkshire, it’s the same. I’ve got the same mindset and whether it’s cold or wet, you’ve got to try and find a way to do the job you want to do.
“If it comes off it comes and if it doesn’t, at least you’ve put yourself in the right frame of mind to try and execute your plans.”
Ahead of such a big summer, a mature and resilient Rashid is good news for Yorkshire and England fans alike.
Odds correct at 1620 BST on 16/04/19
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