NEWS
Follow UsShaik Rasheed has had a stellar year in youth cricket, scoring runs for fun across different competitions. Taking his form to the U-19 World Cup, the Indian vice-captain scored 201 runs for the U-19 side, averaging 50.25, including scoring a fluent half-century in the final against England.
It was in the semi-final where the right-hander was at his best, with a 94 that took Australia by storm. While he only made four appearances for the Indian side, his influence was enough to convince the former Indian selector, MSK Prasad of his talent.
Prasad, who oversaw India’s selection during the 2019 World Cup, suggested that the Andhra batsman could go on to become a mainstay of the Indian men’s side, at No.3, across formats.
"He can be our future No. 3 in red ball and white ball cricket," Prasad told Cricbuzz.
"He likes to score in front of the wicket and bats late, giving himself sufficient time to play the ball. Those are very good qualities. What was most impressive was his temperament. He never looked rattled when India were under pressure," Prasad says.
On the other hand, the right-hander was grounded, suggesting that he still needs to work on his game before making it big on the international stage.
“We have just won the Under 19 World Cup and we are over the moon. The victory was a tribute to the bonding among the players and the coaches have ensured we stayed here (in the Caribbean) like a family. My future... I will take it the way it comes. I need to improve my game and I will work on it," Rasheed said.
During the course of the tournament, the right-hander was affected by COVID-19, which ruled him out for a brief period during the competition.
"I had given up hope of playing any more part in the tournament. Regular testing and 15-day quarantine and I thought the tournament has ended for me," he recalls.
"At that stage, the support staff has backed us well, kept us motivating. We were in isolation and they would do regular video-calling and try to explain us to treat this as a brief injury pause and not as a Covid disruption. Coaches and VVS Laxman Sir would be on the call and they would tell me there is lot more to play in the tournament - quarterfinals, semifinals, final and all those games. They tried to instil a positive mind-set,” he concluded.