'They need to take me seriously' - 17-year-old speedster Naseem Shah warns England

After months of waiting, finally, there are updates on international cricket. No international match has been played since the global pandemic of coronavirus started. However, England and West Indies will resume cricket once again when the two teams square off in a three-match Test series in July.

After this, England will take on Pakistan in a three-match Test series which will begin early part of August. The Asian giants will also play in a three-match T20I series after that.

17-year-old Pakistan pacer Naseem Shah has given a soft signal to the England team that they shouldn’t take him lightly. He wanted to make it clear that the batsmen are not supposed to underestimate him because of his young age.

If they treat me like a small kid, it will be their big loss: Naseem Shah

It is fascinating to see that before even arriving on the English shores, the young pacer has started playing his mind games. In a recent statement, he made it clear to England that he can surely pack a punch even though he is a young bloke.

“If they treat me like a small kid, it will be their big loss. Age doesn’t matter, it’s my bowling that matters — so they need to take me seriously,” Naseem Shah told reporters as quoted by Dawn.

Coming back to Naseem Shah, the young pacer would be desperate to get on the field and bowl in some friendly conditions in England. The right-arm bowler made his debut last year in Australia during Pakistan’s Test series against the baggy green. There is no doubt that the young bowler is mentally strong. He played through his debut Test match even though he got the news of his mother passing away overnight.

In the next Test series against Sri Lanka, he became the youngest bowler to take a five-wicket haul aged just 16 years and 311 days. After this, in a Test match against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi, the young seamer also took a hat-trick, becoming the youngest ever to do that.

With 13 wickets already from just 4 Tests, Naseem Shah seems like another prodigal bowler to come out of Pakistan. He will have the company of another young pacer, Shaheen Shah Afridi, to rattle England in their home conditions.