Ranji Trophy: Makeshift opener Hardik Tamore’s ton against Baroda makes Mumbai almost certain of semis spot

"Although Bashir had no first-class experience prior to this series, two months ago Ben Stokes managed to come upon a video of Bashir bowling to Alastair Cook on Twitter. Day 2 saw young Shoaib Bashir shine with his off-spin. The bowler's cunning and ball revs deceived the Indian batting order. Speaking following Day's play, Joe Root, his teammate, disclosed that he had not previously witnessed much of Bashir bowling. ""It was great to see him keep coming at the batters. I hadn't seen much of him (Bashir) before this series but he is a great character and has a sense of humor,"" Root remarked following the game. The fact that the first question posed to centurion Joe Root during the post-match media briefing following the second day of play in this fourth India-England Test was about the 20-year-old off-spinner is a good indicator of how good Shoaib Bashir was. The seasoned player Root, who spared England's blushes on the opening day, was all praise for Bashir, who held India to four wickets (four for 84) in just his second Test match.

"Since joining the squad, he has performed exceptionally well,"" stated Root. ""His bowling style provides a useful window into his personality and temperament. He's hilarious and a little cheeky. He obviously possesses a great deal of skill in what he does. Bowling 31 of his 32 overs in a row, Bashir Eighteen of those were in tandem with Tom Hartley, the left-arm spinner (two for 47). The fact that the first question posed to centurion Joe Root during the post-match media briefing following the second day of play in this fourth India-England Test was about the 20-year-old off-spinner is a good indicator of how good Shoaib Bashir was. The seasoned player Root, who spared England's blushes on the opening day, was all praise for Bashir, who held India to four wickets (four for 84) in just his second Test match. ""Since joining the squad, he has performed exceptionally well,"" stated Root. ""His bowling style provides a useful window into his personality and temperament. He's hilarious and a little cheeky. "