The poker-faced assassin: Adil Rashid sedates the West Indies to help England wake up
"He is our most important player", were the words of England captain Jos Buttler for chief spinner Adil Rashid aftermath their vital win over co-hosts West Indies in the Super 8 stage of the West Indies. It was natural for the spotlight to shift to Salt's demolition job or the flashy pacers and the death bowling, but the foundation for both were laid out by the ever-inscrutable (both character and variations-wise) tweaker.
Rashid's performances often and unfairly go under the radar, no matter how high he scales the rankings or how many wickets he picks. However, luckily. England incredibly values him, and that has been evident for quite a long time.
In a team full of superstars and bonafide unique match winners, including the skipper himself, terming Rashid as the most important player is a huge call. Yes, generally, spinners are inherently the most crucial members of the squad in such conditions.
Even Mitchell Marsh had termed Zampa as Australia's most important player recently. However, there is just something different about the bond Adil Rashid shares with England.
Buttler had named Rashid as his first-choice player in his dream team ahead of the 2023 ODI World Cup, and that speaks volumes, and it is clear that it is not teammate bias, it is based on pure merit. He is the third-most capped player for England in the shortest format, going at it since 2009.
Simply put, England are a different side altogether when he performs, and as Andrew Flintoff rightly mentioned while presenting him his 100th T20I cap, he epitomizes everything that England cricket is about.
West Indies entered into an involuntary limbo against Adil Rashid's bag of tricks
Usually, when an operating system crashes it restores to the point where it was last stable (In layman's terms, when you rage quit a game, you find yourself back at the last saved point in your next attempt). West Indies' attempt to play against Adil Rashid also resembled a system that had glitched and frozen, and was booting in safe mode.
The mighty West Indies, whose batting unit can make a living playing in a fictional six-hitting competition, were stuck doing the most menial task of nudging the ball around for singles. Rashid had them completely in their control like a puppeteer, only the strings were missing.
Now, did West Indies give Adil Rashid too much respect? or was Rashid robbed of more wickets because of their frozen approach? Either way, the spinner could not have played his part in a better way as England got exactly what they wanted - a chokehold right in the middle of the innings.
It was not the flashiest of spells. The ball was not turning a mile or stumps were not being knocked out, but importantly, it was effective. Rashid, bowling his first three overs on the trot right after the powerplay, conceded only a single boundary, and it was a time when the red-hot Nicholas Pooran was at the crease.
With overs and wickets in hand, West Indies could have done whatever they wanted on a relatively good surface, but Rashid never allowed them to. His first spell completely choked Pooran and Charles, and they failed to unshackle, eventually ending up with strike rates of 111 and 112, almost a criminal offense in Gen-Z's eyes.
His final over could have not been more challenging. In the death overs, he had to face a left-handed Sherfane Rutherford and Andre Russell at the crease. He continued to mix things up, dizzying the batters to an extent, and his spell fittingly ended with a wicket and a dot as his figures read 4-0-21-1.
Finding success against Adil Rashid on a tricky wicket is like winning a game on a slot machine, and you need an incredible amount of luck to win in either case. In the slot machine game, you have to pull a lever and bring three of the same symbols in a row to win. Similarly, while facing Rashid, you need to get the three fundamental parameters of Flight, Variation, and Length completely right to win.
Rashid's pace variation, resulting in him floating the ball and then sending it flatter at his own will had left West Indies paralyzed.
His bowling machine-like ability to stick to the good length meant that it was not full enough for the batters to able to get to the pitch of the ball, nor short enough to rock back onto the backfoot and pull it.
Although these are the basics that a bowler is taught perhaps in orientation, what makes Rashid different is his ability to read the game and flawless execution.
Adil Rashid's sordid love affair with the Caribbean remains the key for England
Outside of England, Rashid's most appearances in T20Is have come in the West Indies. He has played 17 matches in the region, and has picked 26 wickets at an economy of 6.41.
Additionally, he has never gone wicket-less in the Caribbean islands. At the risk of jinxing it, as long as the streak continues, England have one hand on the title.
The other departments of England slowly coming back to life after the threat of a group stage exit has vanished. Bringing Sam Curran and Reece Topley back into the mix at the expense of Will Jacks and Chris Jordan is paying off. Another huge factor is Jonny Bairstow coming back to form in an unfamiliar position at a crucial time.
If their biggest match winners like Buttler and Archer continue to play to their potential and Rashid keeps doing Rashid things, then they can continue to be a threat, if they are not already.
For a man who has someone like Virat Kohli as his bunny, has been ranked No.1 in the bowlers ranking, and has more than 100 appearances, Rashid sure is not flamboyant or flashy. Luckily for England, they have more flamboyance than they know what to do with.
At this juncture, when England pull the lever on the slot machine they need pure skill, temperament, and consistency to go all the way- and hence, they have struck the jackpot with Adil Rashid.