Lancs opener Hameed backed to become

SHIVNARINE Chanderpaul has backed Haseeb Hameed to rediscover his run-scoring form, and become a Test star for England.

The Lancashire opener was thrown into the spotlight last winter when he made his Test debut aged just 19 during the tour of India.

And he impressed many, scoring two half-centuries in six innings before suffering a broken finger.

That came after an impressive first full season for Lancashire, in which he became the youngest batsman to score 1,000 runs for the county – beating Michael Atherton’s record – and the first to score centuries in both innings of a Roses match.

He has been hailed as the most promising young batsman in the country and tipped for a long Test career.

But after a frustrating winter, which saw him also undergo a sinus operation as well as going under the knife to repair his broken finger, Hameed has struggled in the County Championship this season.

In his six innings for the Red Rose, he has scored just 99 runs at an average of 16.50. He has yet to register a half-century, and his last three innnings have included two ducks.

However, he did make an unbeaten 75 in the Royal London One-Day Cup against Nottinghamshire.

And West Indies Test legend Chanderpaul, who has amassed a staggering 26,000 first-class runs and 75 centuries, believes 20-year-old Hameed will come good.

“It (his current form) is just one of those things, he just needs to start his innings, once he does that he will be fine,” said the 42-year-old.

“It is still early in the