FEW sights in sport draw more admiration than an athlete knuckling down and playing through the pain barrier.

And when the sportsman in question is a batsman gritting his teeth as he faces a barrage of missiles with a broken finger, you cannot help but admire their guts as well as their skills and prowess.

It is a clear indication of just what an impact the young Boltonian has had on the England Test side that, when he returns to the UK to undergo surgery on his left hand, many will feel any hope of England salvaging a series draw go with him.

Sadly, Hameed’s first Test series has been ended prematurely as he must have a plate inserted into his hand to repair a little finger, broken in two by direct hits in successive Tests.

But, having finished his first three matches with a more-than respectable average of 43.8, England captain Alastair Cook and coach Trevor Bayliss have no doubts he will be back to open the batting in plenty more Tests.

And they are not alone in that assessment, as big brother Saf has been hailing the 19-year-old’s guts, spirit and determination.

“I spoke to Has after the second Test, he said he’d been hit on the finger in the second innings and it was bruised, so he could hardly grip the bat,” said Saf Hameed.

“Then obviously he was hit on the same finger in the first innings of the third Test.

“Knowing Has, I wasn’t surprised he was wanting to be out on the field, even with a broken finger – he’s always been a warrior.

“He’s got great determination, he always has, he’s a real fighter.”

Saf and the rest of the Hameed family were present for Haseeb’s debut in the first Test in Rajkot – some feel his berth was overdue and he should have won his first caps during the previous tour of Bangladesh.

And his debut, more than a decade in the making, made for a memorable trip for the entire clan.

“I went over for the first Test, I had to be there to see him make his debut for England,” said Saf, now back in Halliwell. “My other brother, Nuaman, was due to get married over there so we went for the wedding and got to see Has play, so it worked out well for me.

“We were so proud to see him make his debut.

“It was my dad who introduced cricket to us, he was always very passionate about the game – he used to be a really good player himself too, a very good player in the Bolton League when he played for Heaton and Astley Bridge.”

Saf and Nuaman both had their cricketing skills honed by dad Ismail during their formative years but, although he was more than 10 years their junior, it was Haseeb who would catch the eye of the older players.

“I played for Tonge and for Little Lever, that’s where it all started for Has really,” recalled Saf.

“Me and Nuaman were playing when we were about 15, 16 or 17 so Has would probably only have been about five or six but he’d always be down there, tagging along with his little bat and ball.We knew from a young age he was really talented, and he was always well looked after by our team-mates, they’d often pop over and see how he was doing.

“I think they knew he was special, even back then.

“A lot of them joked about putting money on him playing for England before he was 25 – one of the lads who did that asked me to thank him before he mentioned any congratulations!”

While Haseeb’s star is most certainly on the rise, it has been a dreadful series for the team as a whole.

But Saf is hopeful that, even without his little brother around to open with Cook, in the remaining two Tests they could still pull off an unlikely series draw.

“It’s been a disappointing set of results, especially when you consider Alastair Cook won two out of the three coin tosses, and winning the toss is such an advantage on the sub-continent,” added the 31-year-old. “But it’s still only 2-0, hopefully England can still draw the series, that would definitely be a good result from 2-0 down.

“I’m so proud of Has, we’re all over the moon for him.

“To think he used to idolise the likes of (India captain Virat) Kohli and Cook and now he’s out on the field of play with them playing for England.

“It’s still all a bit surreal, but he’s worked really hard all his life so he deserves every success that comes his way.”