I don't know if he has the most potential of all the young spinners around, as I am sure there are many out there I have never even heard of, let alone seen. But Kaneria certainly is the one who has achieved the most to date, both in terms of his Test record and his wickets in the County Championship.

Whether he goes on to greatness from here is the key question, and one which no one can answer. He is definitely not the best Pakistani leggie since Qadir, since little Mushy (Mushtaq Ahmed) had as much promise and potential as Kaneria at the early stage of his career. It did fizzle out later on, and the same can happen to Kaneria. Kaneria could become the next Qadir, or he could meander into mediocrity as so many young and talented Pakistani cricketers eventually do!

The Hindu thing is not even an issue, just like Hussin's being Indian was not an issue in England. There might be some die-hards in Pakistan for whom players' ethnicity is an issue, just like in England, Yorkshire CCC have the reputation amongst British Asians for being the most negative in their attitude to race and multi-culturalism.

However, Pakistan's current vice-captain is a christian, and given the tiny percentages of non-Muslims living in Pakistan, two out eleven non-Muslim cricketers in our Test XI is pretty good going, and does not smack of any discrimination either way.

Kaneria is only 24 and has a long way to go; spinners don't reach their best till their late 20s, and according to Woolmer, Kaneria has a lot to learn but has all the right tools, and in a few years could develop into something very very special.

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