Rashid produces spin masterclass to stun Sri Lanka

REPORTS of the demise of Adil Rashid as a force in the global game are greatly exaggerated.

That’s certainly the case on the evidence here. Sri Lanka were threatening to propel their run rate out of control and England out of the World Cup when, with the Sri Lankans 52 for one, Jos Buttler threw the ball to the Yorkshire leg-spinner for the final over of the power play.

Given his recent record, Buttler’s decision might have been more in hope than expectation, but Rashid rediscovered his mojo at the most critical of junctures, taking the heat out of Pathum Nissanka’s assault by plunging his pace and showing a willingness to flight the ball on Sydney’s sluggish surface.

At that point, Nissanka’s strike rate was in excess of 200, but Rashid blunted it with four dot balls. Each variation was fuller and floatier than has been his standard during a six-month spell in which his wicket-taking threat has been neutered. It altered the momentum of the contest.

‘Having lost the toss, we knew the wicket would probably slow up as the game went on, being a used wicket,’ Buttler said.

‘He’s been someone we always turn to and I was really pleased with his performance. When you get him on surfaces like this, he’s a really tough customer to face,’ the England captain said.

Seven years ago, at the start of England’s rebirth as a white-ball side, Rashid offered an X-Factor with his leg spin, but his rise since has bred familiarity among opponents. So when he hit a barren spell in mid-2022, he reverted to bowling flatter and faster — to detrimental effect. Prior to yesterday, Rashid had taken just one wicket for 168 runs since landing in Australia last month.

In a reprise of his performances in the Caribbean at the start of the year, when he went through a five-match series against West Indies for less than a run a ball, here the 34-year-old displayed flawless control of his art, conceding just two runs from his opening over, and not a single boundary in a man-of-the-match return of 4-0-16-1. After luring Nissanka into a mishit, Rashid is now level with Chris Jordan as England’s leading T20 wickettaker.

Yes, these were conditions made for spin — this was the third match played on this particular pitch — yet that only increased the pressure on Rashid to perform.

To his credit, he dealt with that and appears to have done similarly with the off-field distraction of being a key witness in the Cricket Discipline Commission hearing into racism at Yorkshire, which begins at the end of the month.

Before that, he will have the on-field challenge of bowling at the Adelaide Oval with its idiosyncratic dimensions in Thursday’s semi-final — almost certainly against India. With short square boundaries, spinners are vulnerable whenever erring too short or full.

However, Rashid has more experience of it than others, having played for both South Australia and Adelaide Strikers during his 15-year career. He returns having reminded everyone what an essential ingredient he is in an England team attempting to unify cricket’s white-ball world titles.