When Pakistan last arrived in England for a Test tour, in the Covid-bubble summer of 2020, they brought along the future. Shaheen Shah Afridi, 20, was the towering left-armer set for world domination. Naseem Shah, 17, was armed with a Test hat-trick and a velvety action, the right arm whipping the ball down at 90mph. They looked the part, carrying the grand traditions of Pakistani fast bowling, a reminder of the golden names that came before: Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis.
Mohammad Abbas joined Shaheen and Naseem in that seam attack as the odd man out, 30 and medium-fast, a first-class specialist, the accountant in a movie-star lineup. But six years on Abbas is the great survivor, the only one of that triumvirate named in Pakistan’s squad for their three-Test series in England starting next week. Shaheen and Naseem have suffered for their art – the former has struggled with the red ball since a knee injury in 2022 – and fallen victim to the tragicomic mismanagement of the Pakistan Cricket Board.
