Haseeb Hameed

Nicknamed ‘The Baby Boycott’ by his fellow colleagues for his impeccable technique and discipline, Haseeb Hameed is a right-handed opening batsman who plays for the England national team and for Nottinghamshire in the domestic circuit. 

Lancashire had not produced an English opener since the great Michael Atherton retired in 2001. However, that changed in 2016, when Hameed was selected to be in the England squad for the five-match Test series against India, away from home. 

He became the youngest English opener when he featured in the playing XI against India in Rajkot. The youngster immediately made an impact, scoring a half-century on his debut innings. It was a sublime knock and garnered praise even from the Indian cricketing fraternities. 

In the Test match held at Mohali, he slammed an unbeaten 59 and batted with a fractured finger. Following the Test, Hameed was sent back to England as a precautionary measure.

In the 2016 County season, Hameed registered more than 1,000 runs and was in sublime touch every time he came out to bat. The Bolton born became the youngest player to score 1,000 runs for Lancashire- eclipsing Michael Atherton. He also became the fifth youngest to score 1,000 runs in a county season. 

Post 2017, Hameed struggled at the domestic level and registered just 165 runs at an average of 9.71 in the 2018 Bob Willis Trophy. 

Arguably one of the most talented players to have come out of the Lancashire academy, the weight of expectations have perhaps diminished his career. Still young at the moment, Hameed has all the tools and skills to bounce back and make a grand comeback at the international level.

(As of June 21)