- England spinner Adil Rashid is targeting more success with the national side
- Aspiring cricketers from across Yorkshire will attend his centre in Bradford
Inside an old warehouse in the middle of this housing estate in Bradford is the vision of England’s most successful white-ball spinner. For Adil Rashid, pulling this off ranks right up there with his two World Cup wins.
When we meet, it is a school morning and he opens the door to the Adil Rashid Cricket Centre.
By evening, this place is filled with aspiring cricketers from all around West Yorkshire, developing their skills on one of the four indoor nets. Occasionally, his England team-mates pop by.
‘When I grew up we had nothing like this. I’d bowl to dad in the local park or in our basement,’ Rashid, 36, tells Mail Sport.
‘This was a messed-up warehouse. It went up for sale and me and my brother, Amar, thought we’d do it up and give back to the community and the next generation. We’ve always wanted to do it. There’s loads who have come through the academy and are playing at youth level for Yorkshire.’
We take a seat after he shows us around and gives us a taste of his latest venture, cans of cold brew coffee. The world’s No 1 ranked T20 spinner has had a quiet few months away from action but is raring to get back in an England shirt. He took one for 25 in the second T20 against Pakistan on Saturday and could face them in the fourth T20 today before the defence of their World Cup title in the Caribbean starts next week.
When Rashid was presented his 100th T20 cap by Andrew Flintoff last winter, Flintoff said he epitomised everything England cricket is about before adding that 100 wasn’t enough and there were plenty more left. Rashid agrees.
‘As long as I’m fit enough and hungry enough, I’ll keep going,’ he says. ‘I don’t just want to be satisfied with two World Cups. I have the dream and the vision of three, four, five World Cups.
‘Remember, you only get one shot at this career so if England want me and need me, I’m here. It could be five years. It could be one year. The aim is to play as long as possible.’
Yet before we look forward, it’s worth looking back. Rashid admits he is still baffled by England’s horror World Cup in India where they lost six of their nine games.
‘There was no beef or anything going on in camp. We just weren’t playing good cricket and lacked confidence,’ he insists.
So why should England supporters expect better next month?
‘It’s a different format and one we became world champions in less than two years ago,’ says Rashid. ‘We’ve got 15 match-winners and I believe it’s a stronger squad than when we won in 2022. Jofra Archer is back and that’s a big part.’
I mention Chris Jordan and instantly there is a smile on his face. Alongside Moeen Ali and Archer, the quartet often hang out together on tour.
‘We have that vibe,’ says Rashid. ‘You want your friends to perform and you want to win together with your mates. With the unity we have and the different cultures gelling together, it’s beautiful.’
In 2018, Rashid signed a white-ball-only deal with Yorkshire and Geoffrey Boycott called him a spoilt brat.
Six years on, it’s clear to see why Rashid made that decision. It was finally a chance to do things his own way. It’s hard to fault that call now.
Rashid is the only England bowler to take more than 100 T20 wickets and is one wicket away from joining Jimmy Anderson and Darren Gough as the only three England bowlers to take 200 ODI wickets.
Yet for all those successes, the fact remains England’s most talented wrist spinner only managed to play 19 Tests.
Despite rumours of a potential recall under Brendon McCullum, that time has passed but Rashid reveals he was seriously tempted. ‘There were definitely talks but nothing concrete like, “Come back, we need you,” he says.
‘The talk was there early on. If (Ben) Stokes or McCullum said, “Look Rash, come back,” I would have considered it. I would love to have played under them with that mindset and freedom just to see how I would perform.’
It was 21 years ago that a 15-year-old Rashid was sent to Australia by the ECB to work with Terry Jenner, who coached Shane Warne. Jenner predicted ‘a terrific Test future’ for Rashid but after making his international bow in 2009, he spent six years in the wilderness before coming back in 2015 and thriving under Eoin Morgan. Andrew Strauss later admitted he had not used him correctly.
By the end of 2009, Alastair Cook was opting for the part-time spin of Joe Denly and Kevin Pietersen over Rashid in a T20 and it was summed up when England opted for James Tredwell over Rashid for a tour of Bangladesh.
‘When I started with England I remember thinking, “I can’t get hit for boundaries here”,’ Rashid recalls. ‘You’d look up and see the captain grabbing his head, huffing and puffing and all that.
‘With Morgan, it was the opposite. As a young ’un, it broke my confidence down and that was a big part of my Test career early on too. With Cooky, he was a great player but I found his captaincy personally challenging. My Test journey was difficult. I only played under Cooky and Rooty. Rooty was a lot better in terms of handling spin bowling.’
Were it not for Morgan’s faith in Rashid in 2015, though, he would not be where he is today as a master of his craft.
‘Now, leggies know it’s OK to bowl bad balls and get smashed for six,’ he says. ‘The ultimate aim is to get wickets and captains get that. It’s come a long way in realising leg-spinners are your match-winners.
‘We only had that shift in 2015 under Morgs. When you see Stokes, you see the confidence he puts in the spinners. It’s OK to go at four, five an over because your aim is to create chances. That whole environment makes you want to play. Knowing that the captain and you are on the same page is a big one.
‘Back then it was about keeping it tight. Now, English cricket is about expressing yourself.’
There is little doubt Rashid has always been someone who has needed to express himself. He even started his own Instagram page last year.
‘I was never on social media before,’ he says. ‘I only got on it a year ago. I just thought it was important to let fans know the real me. I’m not a politician but it lets me show what I stand for and believe in.’
We come to an end as Rashid is due at nearby Bradford Park Avenue to work alongside 21-year-old Yorkshire leg-spinner Jafer Chohan. Giving back to the community, mentoring the next generation and now all eyes on a third World Cup. ‘We’re already the best England side,’ he insists. ‘If we win another, we’ll be up there with the best ever.’
Perhaps he is making up for lost time but make no mistake, Adil Rashid is not done yet.