sport news England spinner Adil Rashid insists he has not 'closed the door' on returning ... trends now

It Is more than three years since Adil Rashid spun a leg-break with the red ball, in which time he has won a World Cup and become England's leading T20 wicket-taker.

But the appointment as Test coach of Brendon McCullum has acted like a googly — a career apparently heading in one direction may yet turn in the other. Suddenly, at 34, Rashid can envisage bowling more than 10 overs in an innings again.

'It's always exciting when something new comes along,' he tells Sportsmail. 'Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes both like to be positive and attacking. That drives me on and it's very exciting.

'Brendon's reached out to me — just a text to check how things are. I've not closed the door on Test cricket. I've not retired, or anything like that. It's something that's still there. It's everyone's dream to play Test cricket and I'm no different.'

After Rashid appeared in the most recent of his 19 Tests, against West Indies in Barbados in January 2019, the consensus was that five-day cricket was no longer his bag. He took none for 117 in an England defeat, was replaced by Stuart Broad in Antigua, and set about preparing for the home World Cup that summer. The rest is history.

But after both Rashid and his close friend Moeen Ali, who announced his retirement from Test cricket last September, were tapped up by McCullum, a seed was planted. Would it make a difference to Rashid if Ali announced his availability once more?

'He's like a brother to me,' he says. 'It's definitely a conversation we'd have, and that would inspire me. It could happen. But for us to get to that point, a lot else has got to happen too.'