For the first ten overs, Usama Mir‘s World Cup debut was all about one dropped catch. The ball slipped right through him, thudding into the chest and plopping to the ground. Over the next few moments, Usama looked twice at his palms, and once at the sky. He must have been itching to hold that ball again.

Twenty-two overs later, when another missed chance at deep midwicket gave Abdullah Shafique an injured finger and the teams a drinks break, Usama, now as a bowler, had disappointment writ large on his face. He was two balls into his second spell, when another drop had come. The first four overs had accounted for 31 runs.

As Usama stood, it was Shadab Khan, Shafique’s substitute, who came up to the bowler and had a quick chat. Not too long ago, Shadab had been replaced by Usama in the XI, putting a pause on Shadab’s recent patch of lacklustre showings.

In a bowling attack already beleaguered by absences and patchy form, Usama’s entry, on paper, seemed to be a handy addition. Pakistan’s spin problems aren’t new: since the start of 2022, among all teams to play men’s ODIs, the bowling average of Pakistan spinners – 43.36 – ranks 18th out of 22 and the economy – 5.54 – is 19th out of 22. They walked into this World Cup without a standout, premier spinner in their ranks.

Shadab, as vice-captain, bowling all-rounder and gun fielder, seemed to be an automatic choice for the World Cup. There was space to accommodate just one leg-spinner, and Shadab fit that bill. At least it seemed so.

But Shadab had his own set of issues. Since the start of 2022, he averages 37.65 with the ball, and 27.83 with the bat. At the Asia Cup, he had gone below an economy of six in just two out of five games, against Nepal and Bangladesh. In his first three games at the World Cup, the numbers stood at 5.62 v Netherlands, 6.87 v Sri Lanka and 7.75 v India.

The Bengaluru ground can’t have been an easy launch pad. Yuzvendra Chahal, probably the most successful leg-spinner at this venue, recently joked in an interview with Wisden India that he had only seen sixes hit at the ground, not fours. Since the start of 2010, among all of the 29 venues where men’s ODIs have been played in India, the Chinnaswamy Stadium has the fourth-highest economy rate for spinners – 5.78.

After the game, David Warner, who inflicted the most pounding on Usama had words of support for the leggie.

“Unfortunately for Usama, he also had a left-hander in there for most of the innings,” Warner said. “Not easy as a leg-spinner to keep trying to bowl to a left-hander. And I felt like he held his length pretty well. And when you’re none for 150 or 200, it’s very challenging as a bowler. So, I wouldn’t discredit the way that he bowled.”

The Australia match was a predictable run-fest on a flat pitch with small dimensions. Usama’s initial impression might not have been the best, but there were the odd deliveries that carried promise. With a bit more tuning, he can be what Pakistan expects of him: a tall leg-spinner capable of turn and some extra bounce, and a handy googly to boot. Although not as polished as Shadab, he can bat a bit too. What he does need is some backing and a venue not as averse as Bengaluru.

“Everybody in the dressing room will put their arms around Usama and support him,” bowling coach Morne Morkel assured.

It proved to be a target to big to assail, and Pakistan will be hurting from back-to-back losses now, their campaign all too familiarly in sticky territory. The spin attack has largely let down so far, but in Usama, there’s hope for a brighter future.