| Player: | SI Mahmood |
DateLine: 28th July 2006
Sajid Mahmood has insisted England need have no worries about his commitment should he be chosen for the second Test at his Old Trafford home ground, despite the fact his parents are from Pakistan.
The Lancashire fast bowler, born and raised in the northwest town of Bolton that is just 15 miles from his county's Manchester base, would fulfill a cherished ambition if he was to play for England at Old Trafford.
"It would be a dream come true for me to play for England at Old Trafford having played all my professional career here," Mahmood said. "To wear an England shirt and play a Test here would be fantastic. I know the place pretty well so it would be good to play for England here."
Mahmood, whose parents migrated to England during the 1970s, grew up supporting the country of his family's origin.
Although the balance is shifting, this remains common practice among significant numbers of British-born Asians although the then England captain Nasser Hussain, himself born in India, called on Britain's Asian communities to support England when Pakistan last visited the UK five years ago.