Fast Bowler Naseem Shah Wins Media Attention In Australia

Fast bowling prodigy Naseem Shah has been the subject of media attention over the past few weeks and his sheer pace at a young age has endeared him to the Australian media and cricket fans

BRISBANE, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 21st Nov, 2019 ): Fast bowling prodigy Naseem Shah has been the subject of media attention over the past few weeks and his sheer pace at a young age has endeared him to the Australian media and cricket fans.

Naseem Shah remained the main subject during the pre-match press conference by Pakistan Captain Azher Ali here at the Gabba on Wednesday and the journalists wanted to know more about a bowler who generated furious pace at a very young age of 16 years.

Captain Azher Ali told that Naseem Shah had been picked for the first test against Australia and thus the bowler was destined to make history for being the youngest fast bowler to debut on the Australian soil at the age of 16 years and 275 days.

Previously, Pakistan's Muhammad Amir was the youngest fast bowler to have played against Australia at the age of 18 years in the year 2009.

The media men showed their keenness about Naseem Shah's early life, education and passion for cricket and were informed that he hailed from Lower Dir district in the province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) and got very little formal education as he dedicated more time to cricket than studies.

Naseem Shah moved to Lahore after intervention of some cricketers in his home town who saw a great talent in him and persuaded his father to allow him to go to Lahore to pursue ambitions of a great fast bowler.

Naseem Shah had told in one of his interviews that though he played lots of tennis ball cricket and bowled great spells of fast bowling in his remote home town but it was in Lahore that he was given spikes shoes for the first time to bowl.

It was in the city of Lahore where his love for cricket and fast-bowling was groomed at the Abdul Qadir Academy - the late Pakistani leg-spining maestro - where he prospered as a very raw talent.

Naseem Shah started playing serious cricket at the age of 13 and later was picked in the Pakistan U-16 and U-19 teams where he made his mark. He spent more than a year in wilderness as he picked injury but continued training at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) under the supervision of PCB doctors and bowling coaches.

It was during his performances in the domestic Quaid-e-Azam Cricket Tournament - the premier first class competitions in the country - that he was picked for the test squad.

Azher Ali elaborated that it was his ability to bowl long spells of bowling and accuracy rather than the pace which paved the way for his selection.

Naseem Shah, who had modeled his bowling style after former Australian fast bowler Shane Bond, tells that he had learnt a great deal from the cricket videos of Pakistani greats Waqar Younas, Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar and wished to emulate their great feats.

Former Pakistan Head Coach Mickey Arthur saw Pakistan cricket's future in Naseem Shah while current Head Coach Misbah-ul-Haq on the recommendation of bowling coach has decided to provide him the opportunity to make his mark on the international platform.