England cricket team's latest batting sensation Haseeb Hameed has been making the headlines lately for all the right reasons. The 19-year old has been receiving heaps of praise from cricketing fraternities and fans all across the globe for the temperament and composure with which he has played so far in the series against India.
The latest admirer of the Lancashire batsman is England’s very own Ian Bell. The right-hander last played for England in 2015 after being dropped due to a poor run of form. During an interview with BBC he talked about his admiration for Haseeb Hameed and claimed that the board needed to be careful with him. "He looks like a Test cricketer," he said.
"He's more of an old school player than your modern breed - very well organised. You need this type of cricketer, who can get in his bubble and bat through long periods,” he added.
Hameed has been very impressive in the series so far with scores of 31, 83, 13 and 25 in his last four Test innings against India. The right-hander has been impressive in his ability to tackle the Indian spinners without any prior experience at the international stage.
Bell went on to say that the youngster shouldn't be put under pressure. He said, "But I feel for him as I don't want everyone to suddenly pin all their hopes on a 19-year-old.”
"Having been through that process as a young England batsman myself, I know he's going to learn a lot along the way. He's going to fail sometimes and he's going to have some good days,” he added.
He stated that the board should be looking to give him a long run if they were to find success. "We've got to stick with him and allow him to build his career in that environment. I hope they give him a run and that he can stay there for a long period of time,” he said.
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He also went on to state that the English batsmen should look to be patient in the series and not look to overdo things. He said, “You have to remember that India very good at home. It's a tough tour when you go to the sub-continent. It's not the easiest tour, even for experienced teams. We've seen Australia lose there and South Africa recently.”
England are currently playing against the Indians in the third of the five-match Test series at Mohali and are 1-0 down in the series.
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