Exclusive: Liam Dawson’s Patience Rewarded as He Bolsters England’s Batting in India Series

England has strengthened its batting department with the inclusion of spin-bowling all-rounder Liam Dawson in the fourth Test against India at Manchester. 

Rather, it is surprising that the 35-year-old didn't play red-ball cricket for eight years and had to wait for Shoaib Bashir's injury to return.

Slow left-arm orthodox bowler Dawson is a Hampshire legend with 371 first-class wickets and 10,731 runs, including 18 centuries and 56 fifties. 

On the other hand, Somerset boy Bashir has 87 in 34 appearances. As a batter, he is nowhere near Dawson. With a total of 240 runs, the average reads 8.27 in first-class matches, and 7.07 in Tests, with a highest score of 13.

Dawson has a first-class batting average of 35.29 and 21.00 in the three Tests he has played thus far. He had only seven Test wickets before dismissing Yashasvi Jaiswal in the ongoing Manchester Test.

No pressure, more wickets and recall

Giles White, Director of Cricket, Hampshire, revealed that Dawson did not feel the pressure to push for selection after a certain age. 

That perhaps brought the best performances out of the cricketer at Hampshire, and led to the international recall. The seasoned campaigner smashed seven hundreds [at an average of 47.59] and took ten five-fors [at an average of 25.63] in the last two-and-a-half Championship seasons.

"He once told the press that his England career was over. Maybe that had a psychological effect. He could relax and enjoy the game without taking in the pressure to go to the next level."

"He is an understated character and quiet. He gets on with his own game and is quite determined. But one thing that stands out to me is his competitive nature. It is something I haven't seen in many," White told SportsBoom.com on Thursday.

A batter with a solid technique

White underlined that Dawson even opened the batting for Hampshire when he was young. 

"He is a genuine all-rounder. His batting is as strong as his bowling. He has 18 first-class hundreds, and he bats at No 6 for us, but he could bat higher. He has a good technique, and he will certainly strengthen England's batting. He helps balance a side if he is batting at 8. If they rest Chris Woakes, he could bat at that position," said White, a veteran of 6,195 first-class runs in 128 appearances across Somerset and Hampshire.

Dawson has been the County's most valuable player in recent times. 

"He has gained confidence over the years, since the time he was last involved with England. Before he probably didn't feel he was good enough the first time around. Now he is ready. The success in the last few years gave him belief," said White, adding, "He had a bigger role with us over the years. He is bowling more and growing in confidence. He has worked on subtle variations, developed his pace and control of flight, and the use of the crease."

The spinner is an old-school cricketer, but he used the T20I platform to push for Test selection. The five wickets in the three T20Is against the West Indies, with a match-winning 4/20 at Chester-le-Street, turned a few heads.

Apart from three Tests, he has turned out in 20 white-ball matches across ODIs and T20Is. 

"When he came back from the England team, he was focused on winning tournaments for Hampshire. We were successful in white-ball cricket over that period, and he played a major part in that. He channelled all his determination for Hampshire and being picked for England is a byproduct of that.

"If he does well in the next couple of Tests, he could be touring Australia for The Ashes in November," White signed off.