Rashid made his ODI and T20I debuts in 2009, and played for the Test team between 2015 and 2019. He was part of the England teams that won the 2019 Cricket World Cup and 2022 T20 World Cup.

Rashid plays as a right-arm leg break bowler. He is England's highest wicket-taker among spin bowlers in both ODIs and T20Is, and England's second-highest wicket-taker in T20Is overall behind Chris Jordan. Along with Jos Buttler, he holds the world record for highest seventh-wicket stand in ODIs: 177 against New Zealand in 2015. in 2023 Rashid was named an MBE in King Charles III' Birthday honors list.

Background

Rashid was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire and is of Pakistani descent. Like his English team-mate Moeen Ali, he belongs to the Mirpuri community; his family immigrated to England from Kashmir in 1967.

His brothers Haroon and Amar are also cricket players.

Early Career
Early Promise

Rashid showed promise from an early age: Jenner spotted him as a 14-year-old and in early July 2005, aged 17, he picked up for the Yorkshire Academy aged 6-13 (youth) team. A few days later he hit 111 for the Yorkshire Cricket Board Under-17s against their Cheshire equivalents in the Under-17 County Championship.

In 2006 he played a string of games for Yorkshire Second XI, making four consecutive centuries. That form, combined with a calf injury suffered by Darren Lehmann, gave him a chance to make his first-class debut.

2006: District Debut and Youth Tests

Rashid made his county cricket debut against Warwickshire at North Marine Road, Scarborough, replacing injured foreign batsman Darren Lehmann. In the second innings he rolled a great 6/67 to break Warwickshire's middle order and win the match for Yorkshire. Rashid was then included in the England U19 Test squad for their series against India U19s. Making his debut for the side in the first Test at Canterbury, he scored 13 and 23 runs and took one wicket. In the second Test at Taunton he put on a dominant all-around performance, scoring 114 and 48 points and claiming 8/157 and 2/45. He also played in the third Test at the Denis Compton Oval in Shenley but made less of an impression, taking just three wickets and counting 15 and 12 runs.

He was a regular in the Yorkshire team from mid-August to the end of the season. He continued to impress, taking 4/96 against Middlesex at Scarborough and scoring 63, his first top half century, against Nottinghamshire at Headingley as part of a fourth-wicket stand of 130 with Craig White to dig Yorkshire out of a hole of 42/ 3 before helping roll out Nottinghamshire's tail to win the match for Yorkshire. Rashid also took part in a two-day "spin match" hosted by the England and Wales Cricket Board, a program that simulated various game-based scenarios to develop young spin bowlers.

2007: Young Player of the Year

During the winter, Rashid suffered a stress fracture in his back and missed the England Under-19 tour of Malaysia, but recovered well enough to be selected for the 2006/07 England A tour in Bangladesh. Despite unimpressive performances, he was tipped off by Yorkshire team-mate Jason Gillespie to play international cricket for England in the future.

Adil is probably England's best young cricketer... I think he could play an all-round role for England in the future.
— Jason Gillespie

Rashid started the English summer at Lord's playing for Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) against 2006 champions Sussex. In his county championship game of the season a few days later at The Oval against Surrey, he hit 86 in the first innings and set up 190 for the sixth wicket with Jacques Rudolph. This set a new partnership record for the sixth wicket for Yorkshire against Surrey, surpassing a mark which had stood since 1902. He continued to impress with bowling numbers of 5/88 against Durham at Headingley in late April. Because of his form, he was selected to play for the England Lions in a tour match against India.

Rashid was considered to play for England's Under-19 side again in their series against Pakistan, but his Yorkshire coach Martyn Moxon showed displeasure at the idea of Rashid being pulled away from county cricket. The selectors decided that as Rashid had progressed to the next level of cricket, having appeared for England Lions, and therefore he shouldn't be pulled out of county cricket to play for England Under-19s. In continuing to play county cricket, he scored his maiden first-class century, 108 against Worcestershire at Kidderminster, and another half-century against Warwickshire.

Over the course of the 2007 English cricket season, Rashid scored 837 with a batting average of 44.05 and took 43 wickets with a bowling average of 42.16 across all first-class matches. He took the most wickets of any Yorkshire player and scored the fourth-most runs. He won several awards in 2007 for his strong form. In June 2007 he won both the YCCSA Young Player of the Year Award for 2006 and the Neil Lloyd Young Cricketer of the Year Award for 2006. On 9 September Rashid was named 2007 Cricket Writers' Club Young Cricketer of the Year, while on 24 September he was awarded the title of PCA Young Player of the Year.

In October 2007, Rashid was named in the "England Performance Program squad", to train at home and in India during the 2007–08 winter.

2008: First Tour with the National Team

In January 2008, Rashid was called up to the England Lions squad for the 2007/08 Duleep Trophy in India. He played two games for the tournament and took six wickets. For the second consecutive season he was also called up to the Marylebone Cricket Club squad to play against Champion County, this time Sussex. He also retained his place in the England Performance Program squad.

There were concerns early in the season that Rashid's bowling would lose some of its diversity as his batting seemed to take precedence, but he then went on to post a career-best bowling record of 7/107 against Hampshire at the Rose Bowl. He followed this up with moves of 5/95 against Lancashire and 7/136 against Sussex. Rashid finished the season with 62 wickets, Yorkshire's leading wicket-taker for the second year in a row.

At the end of the year, Rashid was included in the England national team for their tour of India, although he didn't expect a chance to play for England but was only on the tour for the experience. He was then included in England's squad for the following tour of the West Indies, where he was part of the England team for a tour match against a team from St Kitts and Nevis. Describing Rashid's selection at the age of 20, National Selector Geoff Miller said:
Adil Rashid... is an exciting prospect for the future and his addition will allow us to continue to monitor his development closely and provide additional competition for spots in the Spin Bowling department.
— Geoff Miller

Early International Drafts
2009: World Twenty20 and ODI debut

Rashid was re-picked into the England Lions team for a tour game against the West Indies and he put in a good all-around performance, scoring 72 runs in the England Lions first innings and clinching 3/66 in the West Indies second innings. Despite not being included in Yorkshire's side for the first two Twenty20 games of the season, Rashid's form saw him called up to the national team for the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 as an injury replacement for Andrew Flintoff. In England's first warm-up for the tournament against Scotland, Rashid looked nervous, but in their second warm-up against the West Indies he looked more balanced, winning 1/20 of his 4 overs. During the tournament itself he put up impressive performances against Pakistan and the West Indies, finishing the tournament with 3 wickets at an average of 31.66 and an economy of 7.30 runs per over from his 4 games.

After his World Twenty20 appearances, he was included in England's training squad for the 2009 Ashes series against Australia, seen as a potential replacement for the out-of-form Monty Panesar, but instead of playing a warm-up game with the England XI he again played with the England Lions in a tour match against Australia. He was left out of England's final squad for the Ashes and instead returned to playing county cricket with Yorkshire.

Rashid posted his career-best 117 Not Out and later helped Yorkshire throw Hampshire with numbers of 5/41. He then went on to improve that against Lancashire by going 157 unbeaten and winning 5/97 in the first innings. The feat of scoring a century and winning five for five in a match was the third of his career; The last player to do this feat twice in one season for Yorkshire was George Hirst in 1911.

Rashid made his One Day International debut for England on 27 August 2009 against Ireland. He hit 7 runs and had bowling numbers of 1/16 in a narrow win. He retained his spot on the team for the 1st ODI against Australia and he was the top English bowler, conceding just 37 runs from his 10 overs. He followed that up with a Quickfire 31 from just 23 balls with the bat to almost put England over the line in a tight finish. He impressed Australia's Michael Clarke and James Hopes with his strong performance but was shockingly ruled out by the English side for the next game. He returned for two more games during the series but finished with just 2 wickets on a 74 average.

2009–10: South Africa and Pakistan A

Rashid completely ousted Monty Panesar on the England side and was named as Graeme Swann's replacement for both the Test and ODI squads on their tour of South Africa. He played between teams in the second Twenty20 International but was only used for one over in which he conceded 25 runs, prompting South Africa coach Mickey Arthur to criticize the England side for not showing enough confidence in Rashid's abilities. Due to Swann's injury, Rashid was brought back into the team for the 2nd ODI but he bowled an expensive three overs, conceded 27 runs and was dropped when Swann recovered. He was then dropped from the South Africa ODI squad for the remainder of the series, instead playing four-day games with the England Performance Programme. Meanwhile, offspinner James Tredwell remained on standby for a possible play, suggesting Rashid had lowered the pecking order. His poor form continued in England Performance Program matches and although he rejoined the main squad ahead of the Test series, he did not play in any Test matches.

Following the poor tour for Rashid, he was left out of England's squad for their tour of Bangladesh, instead being sent to the United Arab Emirates to play for England Lions against Pakistan A. His time in the UAE was somewhat more successful than his time in South Africa, and he took 3/13 in the second Twenty20 against Pakistan A to secure a series win for England Lions. After the Twenty20 series against Pakistan A, England Lions also played a Twenty20 against the main England team and Rashid helped cause a shock upset win with another strong bowling performance of 3/22.

Continuation of Domestic Career
Rashid played for Yorkshire in 2010
2010–11: Overlooked by National Selectors; Big Bash

After his unsuccessful winter abroad, Rashid returned to play county cricket with Yorkshire in the summer of 2010. He immediately showed he still had the potential to return to the England side by showing his batting ability in his first game of the season with an impressive innings against Warwickshire. His confidence returned as the season progressed and he had several impressive performances with ball and bat in the county championship, finishing the season with 732 runs at 45.75 and 57 wickets at 31.29 and 26 wickets in the 2010 Twenty20 Cup most Yorkshire bowlers and fourth most overall. Despite his strong performances throughout the season, he was still overlooked by England selectors and left out of their home series against Bangladesh and the squad for the 2010/11 Ashes series in favor of Monty Panesar.

Not having been selected to play for England over the 2010–11 winter, Rashid instead played for South Australia in the 2010–11 KFC Twenty20 Big Bash. He played a useful role in the team alongside fellow spinner Nathan Lyon, and finished the season with 10 wickets, one behind the tournament's leaders Lyon and Pat Cummins, as South Australia won the tournament. Following the Big Bash, Rashid was selected to play for England Lions on a tour of the West Indies, during which they played in the local first-class competition, the 2010–11 Regional Four Day Competition.

2011–12: Decay of Form

Rashid started the 2011 season well with 6/77 and 5/37 in Yorkshire's opening game against Worcestershire but overall he struggled for form and conceded the worst bowling numbers of his career and third worst ever for Yorkshire when he didn't roll a wicket for 187 runs against Sussex. His poor form continued into the 2012 season and he found himself dropped from Yorkshire's team for the first time in his county career. That was the result of his worst start to a county season yet, as he won nine wickets at 49.00 in his first six games. Yorkshire President Geoffrey Boycott lamented that Rashid had appeared to have made no progress at all since he started playing county cricket and said Rashid must take responsibility for his poor performances. In ten top-flight games in 2012, he averaged just 16 wickets from 41 and made 129 runs at 16.12, meaning he wasn't even asked to play for the England Lions again.

2013–14: Return to Form

Just hours before the County's 2013 season began, Rashid was quoted by the Independent as saying that if his 2013 season didn't go well he would apply to be loaned from Yorkshire to another County, forcing Yorkshire to turn down the interim There was no rift between Rashid and the club. Martyn Moxon, then Yorkshire Cricket Director, said the interview took place in January, months before the start of the season, and that there had been no problems. Rashid also showed his lackluster form was behind him as he started the season with his highest first class result, a 180 against Somerset. Two more centuries followed, one against Warwickshire and a second against Somerset, taking his average for over 200 in the county season to that point. In 2014, Rashid continued to improve his bowling, particularly limited overs cricket, and posted career-high bowling scores of 5/33 in a one-day game against Hampshire.

In April 2022, he was bought by the Northern Superchargers for the 2022 season of The Hundred.

Back to International Cricket
2014–15: South Africa A, West Indies and Ireland

Due to his form in county cricket, Rashid was called up to the England Lions squad for their tour of South Africa in early 2015 to play against South Africa A in both their first-class and one-day series.

He batted well on the tour with innings of 78 and 68 in the unofficial Tests. In March 2015, Rashid was called up to the England Test squad for the West Indies tour. In the tour matches leading up to England's Test series against the West Indies, Rashid did not do well enough to make the Test team as the selectors favored James Tredwell over him. Although not used in the Test matches, he was not allowed to return to England to play with Yorkshire early in the county cricket season, although Rashid left the tour early to join England's ODI team for their game against Ireland. After the match, Yorkshire hired a private jet to fly Rashid back in time for their next county match against Hampshire, where he won four wickets in each inning.

2015: Returned to the ODI side against New Zealand and Australia

With the Ashes rolling in 2015, England selectors decided to rest Moeen Ali from their ODI series against New Zealand and brought in Rashid as his replacement. Rashid made an immediate impact in the first game of the series when he was involved in the highest 7th wicket partnership in ODI history with Jos Buttler where they tallied 177 runs. Rashid reached his first half century in just 37 balls and went on to hit 69 runs, then he also delivered the flashiest bowling of the game, using his Googly to take the wicket from Kane Williamson, and finished on counts of 4 /55. Rashid played all five games in the series for England, finishing with a total of 8 wickets.

Rashid was included in England's 13-man squad for the first Test of the Ashes but selection ruled they would only use Rashid as a second spinner alongside Moeen Ali in the Test if there was a spinning pitch. Rashid stayed in the Test squad for every Ashes game but did not play and instead continued to play county cricket for Yorkshire and scored a century against Durham. Despite not playing in the Ashes at all, Rashid was allowed to play against Australia in the ODI series and cemented his place in the team with scores of 4/59 in the 1st ODI and 2/41 in the 3rd ODI. In the five-game series he won 7 wickets, the most bowlers in England.

2015 Pakistan

In October 2015, Rashid was selected from the England tour to play against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates where he made his debut in the first Test at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium. Rashid had a blast in the first innings of his first game on the Test side, finishing with numbers 0-163, while Pakistan had 523 - the worst numbers by a Test debutant. However, in the next innings he suffered a remarkable twist of fate, finishing with scores of 5-64, a return almost good enough for England to win the game, although it eventually ended in a draw. In the second Test, he took 1–84 in Pakistan's first innings and 1–107 in his second as England lost the game by 178 runs, although Rashid made his first Test a half-century in England's second innings, hitting 61. In the third and final Test, Rashid did not take a wicket in Pakistan's first innings, and in the second innings he finished 1-97 as England lost the match and series 2-0.

Following the Test series, Rashid played in the ODI series. He only took one wicket in the first three games, finishing with figures of 0–60 in the first game, which England lost. After taking 1–32 in the second match, he again finished wicketless in the third match of the series. He was expensive in the final match of the series, although he did pick up three wickets and England won the match and the series 3–1.

He played in all three of the T20 matches. After not bowling or batting in the first game, he took figures of 2–18 in the second game as England secured a three-run victory. He took 1–29 in the final game which went to a Super Over, with England winning the matches after the scores finished level.

2015/16 South Africa

At the urging of manager Jason Gillespie, Rashid signed to play for the Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash in 2015-16 after being left out of the England squad for the South Africa tour.

Rashid was not selected for the Test series against South Africa, although he retained his place in the ODI squad. After not taking a wicket in the first game, he finished the second game on numbers 1–43, which England won by five wickets. After taking 1-45 in the third game, he had his bets returned in the fourth game of the series. After hitting 39 with the bat, he hit numbers from 2-38, despite South Africa securing a one-wicket win. In the final match of the series, he took numbers from 1-59 as South Africa won the match by five wickets to win the series 3-2. England lost both T20 matches, although Rashid did quite well, scoring figures of 1–24 in the first game and 1–30 in the second game, although England lost by nine wickets.

T20 World Championship 2016

Rashid scored numbers 1–20 in the opening game against West Indies, although it wasn't enough to prevent defeat. In the second game, he posted numbers of 1-35 against South Africa before posting his best numbers of the tournament, 2-18 against Afghanistan.

In the second game, he posted numbers of 1–35 against South Africa before posting his best numbers of the tournament, 2–18 against Afghanistan. With England having to beat Sri Lanka to qualify for the semi-finals, Rashid finished 0-31 as England won by ten runs. He didn't take a wicket against New Zealand in the semi-final but performed well in the final against the West Indies, scoring figures 1-23. Despite their good performance, England suffered a narrow defeat and finished runners-up.

2016 Sri Lanka and Pakistan

Rashid did not take a wicket in the first ODI, despite playing economically when the match ended in a draw. He took 2-34 in the second match of the series, which England won by ten wickets. In the third match, which was affected by rain, he failed to pick up a wicket and the match was eventually abandoned. In the fourth ODI he went 2-47 as England won by six wickets. He conceded two more wickets in the final game of the series as England earned a 3-0 win in the series after winning the match by 122 runs. Playing in the only T20I between the two sides, Rashid bowled economically, conceding just 25 runs from his four overs as England won by eight wickets.

Rashid posted figures of 2-51 in the first ODI against Pakistan as England made a winning start. In the second ODI he took numbers from 1-51 as England restricted Pakistan to 251 and won the match by four wickets. In the third game of the series, he hit figures from 2-73 as England won again to take a 3-0 lead in the series. In the fourth match he took numbers from 3-47 as England won by four wickets. Rashid was rested for the final which England lost. He took numbers 1–29 in the only T20I between the two sides which England lost by nine wickets.

2016 Bangladesh

In the first ODI against Bangladesh, Rashid took numbers from 4 to 49 to help England to a 21-run win. In the second match he went 33 unbeaten and took two more wickets, but England lost. In the third match of the series he took 4-43 as England recorded a four wicket win to win the series 2-1. In the first Test, Rashid scored 26 points with the racquet before winning 2-58. He took 1-55 in Bangladesh's second innings as England recorded a 22-run win. In the second Test, Rashid was wicketless in the first innings but took 4–52 in the second innings. England failed to pursue their goal and lost by 108 runs.

2016-17 India

In the first Test against India, Rashid took numbers 4–114 in India's first innings before taking 3–64 in his second innings. However, England failed to force a win and the game ended in a draw. Rashid took 2-110 in India's first innings of the second Test before going 32 unbeaten with the bat. He continued to bowl well in India's second innings, taking 4-82 despite India winning the game by 246 runs. In the third Test he took numbers 4–118 in India's first innings before taking 1–28 as India secured an eight wicket win. In the fourth Test, he took a total of 631 numbers from 4–192 in India's first innings as they won by one inning and 36 runs. In the last game of the series, he made 60 in England's first innings before hitting numbers from 1-153 as India published 759/7 and won the match to win the series 4-0.

Rashid played India in the first ODI and scored 0-50 as England lost by three wickets. He did not appear in the rest of the series, although he retained his place for the T20Is. He didn't bat or roll in the first T20I as England won by seven wickets. In the second match he went 1-24 but England lost by 5 runs as India tied the streak. In the last game of the series, he took numbers from 0-23 as India went 202/6 and won by 75 runs.

Adil Rashid Cricinfo He was also named as part of the 2017 Champions Trophy Team of the Tournament by ICC, Cricinfo and Cricbuzz.

2017 West Indies and Ireland

Rashid went 1-43 against the West Indies in the first ODI as England won by 45 runs. In the second game he went 2-53 as England secured a four-wicket win. Rashid made nine with bat as England went 328 in the final ODI before going 1-5 with the ball as England won by 186 runs to win the series 3-0. Later that same year, the West Indies toured England. Rashid's first appearance was in the only T20I where he posted a personal best of 3-25. He continued that fine form in the ODI series, scoring 2-31 in the first of five economics to limit the tourists to 204/9.

England made easy work of the total as they drove to a seven-wicket win. Although the majority of the second ODI was abandoned due to rain, he won 3-34 in the third while England won by 124 runs. In the last two games, Rashid took a lone wicket in each, although England won both games and went on to go on to a 4-0 series win.

England started their summer preparing for the Champions Trophy, which they were hosting for the second year in a row. The preparation started with two ODIs against Ireland. In the first ODI, Rashid took a career-best 5-27 while Ireland stumbled to 126 at full power. England won the game comfortably; They drove to a seven-wicket win. In the second ODI, Rashid made a quick 39 from 25 deliveries, although his bowling proved less effective as he won 1-68. England still managed to win the game by 85 runs and claim a 2-0 series win.

2018 Australia and India

Rashid played in all five ODIs against Australia, taking 12 wickets at an average of 21.50.

In early 2018, Rashid informed Yorkshire of his desire to only play white ball cricket for the upcoming season and will not compete in the county championship for the team, preferring to focus on his limited career.

Rashid was called up in the England squad to play Test cricket against India in the 2018 series, sparking controversy after he decided not to play 4-day county cricket for Yorkshire. In the second Test, he became the first English cricketer in 13 years to complete a Test match without batting, bowling or catching on the field.

2019 West Indies and the Cricket World Cup

On England's West Indies tour in 2019, Rashid was selected to all three squads. He only played one test in which his numbers were 0-117. In the first ODI he won 3-74 with England winning by 6 wickets. In the second he took 1-28 in a loss. In the fourth ODI, he picked up his second five-man ODI with numbers 5 through 85 to help England to a 28-run win.

In April 2019 he was called up to England's squad for the 2019 Cricket World Cup. On 21 June 2019, Rashid played his 150th cap for England against Sri Lanka.

2020 and 2021

On 29 May 2020, Rashid England was called up to a 55-strong squad of players to begin training ahead of international matches beginning in England following the COVID-19 pandemic. On 9 July 2020, Rashid was added to England's 24-man squad to begin behind closed doors training for the ODI series against Ireland. On 27 July 2020, Rashid was called up to England's squad for the ODI series. In the second game against Ireland he became the first spin bowler for England to win 150 wickets in ODIs. In November 2020, in the second game against South Africa, Rashid took his 50th wicket in T20I cricket.

Adil Rashid IPL 2021 Punjab Kings have signed England leg-spinner Adil Rashid for the second leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) to be played in the UAE. He has replaced Australia pacer Jhye Richardson who was ruled out of the tournament due to fitness concerns along with Riley Meredith.

In September 2021, Rashid was named in England's squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

Rashid was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2023 Birthday Honors for services to cricket.

Bowling Style

Rashid uses four different deliveries: the leg break, the top spinner, the googly and the slider.

Charity Work

Rashid became an Ambassador for the Overseas Plastic Surgery Appeal charity in November 2018. OPSA are a Yorkshire-based charity that carry out most of their work in the Punjab region of Pakistan.