Taha Hashim on Saqib Mahmood, a fast bowler with the brains to match the brawn.

Listen to Saqib Mahmood speak of his art and you’re left bemused that he’s just 22. Just pick apart this, from an interview with Wisden Cricket Monthly in October. “My run-up in white-ball cricket is one yard longer than in red-ball cricket,” Mahmood said. “It’s because in red-ball cricket I try and stand up taller, and stand the seam upright. My delivery stride in white-ball is slightly longer, so I’m more skiddy.”

Such a trajectory, designed to aid his yorkers and encourage reverse swing at the death, makes sound sense for the requirements of bowling fast with a white ball. This is his theory, not that of a coach or captain. No other English bowler, to his knowledge, has tried it before. England have an academic in their ranks.

The Lancashire seamer subsequently went on to make his international debut on the tour of New Zealand, although his three wickets in three T20Is at 38.33, while going at nearly 12 an over, showed that there was still much to learn. “T20 can be brutal,”he admitted at an England Lions media day earlier this month.

He was part of the squad for the two Tests that followed, and though he didn’t play in either, time watching on was not wasted. Rather than bear the brunt of two docile surfaces that resulted in a series to forget, Mahmood, with the help of bowling consultant Darren Gough, developed his reverse-swing capabilities.

[caption id=”attachment_136620″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Darren Gough provided plenty of guidance to Mahmood in New Zealand[/caption]

“The first Test, I wasn’t involved in Mount Maunganui, so it was a case of watching how the New Zealand guys bowled. I was watching quite closely, seeing the fields they have, the tactics.

“I’d watch then go into the nets, try things and very quickly I was picking up on reverse swing.

“I obviously get reverse when I bowl but I wouldn’t know how to go about it as best as I could before working with Goughie. He told me how much he practised it, which I was nowhere near.

“When you’re trying to reverse swing a ball back into a right-hander your mind is telling you to push the ball. But you don’t want to do that. As easy as it sounds, it does take a while to get used to it.

“By the back-end of the trip I was doing 10 balls at the end of every session and I actually got pretty good. And after that it was, ‘I can’t wait to get a ball in my hand and do this in a game’, so I’m effective from ball one of my spell, rather than getting a feel for it by my second over. I made good strides.”

And did he manage to convince the Kookaburra, English cricket’s great old foe, to join his cause?

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“I worked a way out where I was missing the seam, hitting one side of the ball constantly in the nets and it happened quickly for me. I’d pick an old ball out and try and get it reversing as quickly as possible.”

Add in his work on a leg-cutter to develop “new skills for unresponsive pitches”, as well as a slight modification to his run-up to regain some pace via the tutelage of Gough, and the picture becomes clearer of what we’re dealing with here: brains to go with brawn.

The call didn’t come for the Test series in South Africa, and Mark Wood’s triumphant return will keep him at arm’s length in the format for the time being. Still, having been handed his maiden ODI call-up for the upcoming three-match series, now comes the opportunity for Mahmood to play the format he’s made his name in, having earned the title of One-Day Cup MVP last year for his 28 wickets in the tournament.

It’s also worth reflecting on the timing of his arrival. The opening ODI at Newlands will be England’s first since that raucous day at Lord’s; a new cycle is here, culminating in 2023 with a World Cup in India. The indications are there that the ECB want Mahmood for the long haul.

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The game moves on fast. Liam Plunkett – sculpted beard, beacon of middle-overs reliability and England’s lucky charm last summer – has been discarded, his age not aligning with the end goal of 2023. When England announced their squad for the ODI series in December, Mahmood was joined by two 21-year-olds, Sam Curran and Pat Brown (who was subsequently ruled out with a lower back stress fracture).

While Curran is clearly a special cricketer, and Brown, the knuckleball connoisseur, has attributes to fill a Plunkett-shaped hole, Mahmood’s extra pace and presence makes him more alluring, and it shows with the ECB handing him a first-of-its-kind pace bowling development contract.

The deal will see personnel at the national performance centre have a greater say in Mahmood’s schedule and his fitness programmes. In exchange, a chunk of his wages will come from the board.

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It’s to be hoped that Mahmood isn’t mollycoddled by those at Loughborough; his independence of thought is one of his best attributes. While Mahmood has praised the influence of Gough, he is a smart and astute thinker that, for the most part, should be tasked with identifying his own vulnerabilities. That’s what’s resulted in different actions for different coloured balls and a Waqarish quality to his yorkers that’s come through watching YouTube clips.

For now, there won’t be too much time for tinkering, with his schedule – which includes a top-end contract to play for Manchester Originals in The Hundred – a busy and challenging one. Jofra Archer’s troubling right elbow means Mahmood will stay in South Africa for the T20I series after the ODIs, with part of the red-ball leg of England Lions’ tour of Australia to follow immediately. With an away Ashes series late next year, the significance of making an impression in whites isn’t lost on him. 

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“[The next Ashes] is a long time away but if I can perform in this [Lions] series I can take some confidence if I am there in two years.”

The focus remains on the here and now, however, with an ODI debut inching nearer. “It’s a chance for me to go out there and perform. I’ve had experience in T20… as a bowler I can maybe be a bit more attacking [in ODI cricket]. I’m just looking forward to being out there and playing. I don’t look too far ahead.”