England history maker Rehan Ahmed says it would be a "dream" if he was picked to play in the Ashes, having enjoyed a fairytale Test debut against Pakistan in December.
After becoming England's youngest ever men's Test cricketer, Ahmed picked up 5-48 in Pakistan's second innings as he produced a game-changing spell that helped Ben Stokes ' side seal an eight-wicket win and a historic 3-0 series whitewash.
Now the 18-year-old has his sights set on the Ashes as England look to regain the urn from Australia for the first time since 2015, although he remains pragmatic about his chances of selection. "I still dream of it, but at the same time I take each day as it comes," he said of the Ashes.
"If I play I play and if not then I don't, that kind of thing. The thing is with England if I don't play I love watching it.
"So when I was 12th man in Pakistan, it wasn't just me being 12th man. It was me actually watching England cricket live – and it was the best day of my life."
Ahmed followed up his historic Test debut by becoming the youngest man to play ODI and T20I cricket for England on the recent tour of Bangladesh, where he was able to work closely with fellow leg-spinner Adil Rashid.
The 35-year-old has taken a combined 278 wickets for England in white ball cricket, a figure only surpassed by James Anderson, and Ahmed has been earmarked as his long-term replacement. However, the teenager readily admits it will be a difficult challenge to replace Rashid when he decides to call time on his career.
"Huge shoes to fill," he added. "Even thinking about that puts pressure on me. Rash is his own bowler, he's done so well for England over so many years, so I could only dream of having half the career he's had.
"We are both leg-spinners but we are two different leg-spinners. Rash is more traditional, like a Shane Warne or Stuart MacGill type. Whereas I focus on bowling it a bit quicker, not trying to spin it as much."
