Test match tickets news: Shahzad gets England nod
04/06/2010
Yorkshire pace bowler Ajmal Shahzad has been handed his Test debut by England captain Andrew Strauss for the second Test against Bangladesh.
As cricket fans with Test match tickets take their seats for the first day's action at Old Trafford, they may be intrigued to learn that the exciting youngster has beaten competition from fellow Yorkshireman Ryan Sidebottom.
"We don't know as much about Ajmal at this stage but we have been very excited by what we have seen," Strauss told the Independent ahead of the second Test. "He bowls with good pace, he keeps running in all day and he can swing the ball both ways."
The skipper admitted he had faced a selection headache due to Sidebottom's experience of English pitches and the fact that he is particularly useful against left-handed batsmen.
Earlier this week, Shahzad's England colleague Steven Finn received fulsome praise from Australia's former international wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist.
Posted by Keith Prowse