Determined Shah out to prove point

CRAIG SIMCOX/The Dominion Post

ITCHING TO PLAY: Owais Shah and his daughter, Maya, after arriving in Wellington yesterday.

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Owais Shah has arrived in Wellington hoping a successful stint with the Firebirds will be a springboard for a return to the England cricket team.

With his wife, Gemma, and two-year-old daughter Maya in tow, the Karachi-born top-order batsman gave the impression he is on a mission to impress over the next month after his surprise dumping from the England limited overs side.

That will be music to the ears of Wellington, who have signed Shah for the Twenty20 competition on the recommendation of Stephen Fleming.

The 31-year-old has a reputation as a boundary hitter and a smart and confident cricketer, qualities Wellington dearly need after years of poor results in the one-day arena.

Shah has already offered to stay on beyond his Twenty20 contract to help Wellington in the second half of their 50-over campaign, a further signal cricket is very much the priority at a virtual crossroads in his career.

"I feel harshly treated by England but such is life, so I have to move forward," Shah said. "When you get dropped you have to try and get back in, so I'm going to use this time to springboard my comeback into the England side.

"I feel I have a point to prove so hopefully that helps Wellington win a few games in the Twenty20. I'm itching to play."

Shah has a point. He scored 98 against South Africa in the Champions Trophy in October but two games later was shown the door.

He lives in Southgate in London, plays for Middlesex and has schooled up on Wellington since receiving a call from Fleming about playing here.

He remembers Matthew Bell from youth battles and has played against Jeetan Patel, James Franklin and Jesse Ryder at various times in his 71-game ODI career.

The Shah family left 2 degrees celsius in London on Sunday and arrived to bad weather yesterday but were quickly settling into their Newlands rental property. Shah is the third English player to arrive for the domestic Twenty20 competition after Ravi Bopara (Auckland) and Graham Napier (Central Districts).

"I've been texting Ravi a fair bit, he's been enjoying it," Shah said. "I think I will too. I love cricket, it is what I like to do. I'm in no rush to go back to England so that is why I've offered to stay on and help out Wellington in the one-day form of the game."

Cricket Wellington chief executive Gavin Larsen met the Shah family at the airport and is confident the scorer of more than 13,000 first-class runs will make a telling contribution, starting on Sunday against Central Districts in New Plymouth.

"He's a quality player and Stephen Fleming said to me `don't go past him'," Larsen said.

"He considers him one of the best Twenty20 batsmen in the world and that is a glowing recommendation."

Shah, who is a member of the Delhi Daredevils franchise in the Indian Premier League, admits he enjoys the hurly-burly format.

"To me it is still a game of cricket, and proper shots give you the most value for runs," he said.

"The key things I rely on are it's important you play to your strengths and also you have more time than you think. I know what time I am going to accelerate and when it is time to hit you must hit to your strengths."

Owais Shah

Age: 31

Born: Karachi

Major teams: Middlesex, England, Delhi Daredevils

International record: Tests: 6 matches 269 runs at 26.90

ODIs: 71 games, 1834 runs at 30.56

Twenty20: 17 games, 347 runs at 24.78, strike rate 122.18.

- © Fairfax NZ News