by In a corner of the Trent Bridge dressing room, Jonny Bairstow faced a mirror. “Jonathan Mark Bairstow!” he bellowed. “This is your day, your chance to show what you can do.”
A complete, undiluted Bazball was about to be released for the first time. In June 2022, the Test against New Zealand hung in the balance at tea: England needed 160 from 38 overs with six wickets in hand. Then, encourage a ham and cheese toastie and his pep talk, as told in the book BaseballBairstow smashed 93 off his next 44 balls, a blur of power, brilliant timing and smashed six scores over his fine leg.
It was the prelude to one of the most extraordinary spells by an English batsman in Test history. Over five consecutive innings in three weeks, Bairstow fired scores of 136, 162, 71 not out, 106 and 114 not out: 589 runs at an average of 196 and a strike rate of 102. This is the simplest distillation of could mean Bazball. : how he could free them to explore their full potential by empowering cricketers to play with Elan, unhindered by the fear of failure. While playing as a specialist batsman at No. 5, Bairstow’s instruction from Brendon McCullum was: “Go out and hit him.”
These stirring performances have underpinned England’s faith in Bairstow ever since. After breaking his leg in three places in a fall on the golf course in September 2022, Bairstow feared he would never be able to walk again.
Instead, Bairstow returned for the Ashes series, also getting the keeper gloves back. In England cricket’s eternal debate, between giving preference to cricket or batting, his performances provided ample evidence for both sides. Bairstow averaged 40 with the bat, making runs from No. 7 at rolling rate. But Bairstow also missed six chances to stump or catch in the first three Tests.
The return of Ben Foakes in India, coupled with Harry Brook’s withdrawal from the series, saw Bairstow lose the gloves. It was expected that a return to No. 5 to help Bairstow regain his superb form of the summer of 2022, which included a couple of tons against India at Edgbaston. Instead, the sight of Bairstow continued to fall at his feet before he attempted to sweep his third ball on the fourth afternoon in Rajkot as his troubled tour continued.
To go with his second innings four, Bairstow was out for a duck in the first innings, the time leg before playing back. He averages just 17 in three Tests in this series, adding to his travels in India: Bairstow averages just 25.8 in 11 Tests here. His batting exploits preceded this tour: Bairstow averaged just 23.9 in England’s World Cup defence.
And so the questions about Bazball’s first carrier are becoming more and more inevitable.
As a 34-year-old three-format player, who has kept wicket for most of his professional career, Bairstow’s schedule is one of the busiest in world cricket. Only Bairstow and Joe Root, who are far below their best, have played every Ashes Test, every World Cup match and every Test in India so far. Uniquely among English cricketers this winter, Bairstow is traveling to India for the World Cup, this five-match Test series and then the Indian Premier League: perhaps the toughest challenges in all three major formats of the game. Bairstow is unlikely to be home from the IPL before the Twenty20 World Cup: a reminder of the need for England not to overburden him. Root and Jos Buttler, two of Bairstow’s contemporaries, are no longer selected for one international format; Stokes’ schedule is carefully managed outside of Tests and the World Cup.
England’s reserve in India is Dan Lawrence, whose last Test was just before Stokes and McCullum took over. Lawrence bats with an unorthodoxy and attack that seems naturally in keeping with the regime, and which also contributes off-spin. However, it would be a big surprise if he doesn’t hold his own in Ranchi when Bairstow’s average of 48 under Stokes, his history of often being at his best and the importance of continuity of selection to cricket have been heard. to inspire.
But however Bairstow charges for the rest of the series, the No 5 berth is only on a short-term loan, until Brook returns. With Ollie Pope stuck at No. 3, then Joe Root at No. 4 and Ben Stokes at No. 6, England’s middle order is an unusual arrangement for the medium term. Barring any absences, there is no room for Bairstow.
To be fair, Bairstow will play his 100th Test in Dharamshala. But somehow it would be fitting that Bairstow celebrated the landmark in a context of uncertainty about his role: above all, the question of whether or not he should take the gloves. Over 12 years as a Test cricketer, Bairstow has hardly been immune to this debate; unusually, he averages more when he keeps it than as a specialist batsman.
For all Foakes’ brilliance behind the stumps this series, his Test average has now dipped below 30: an uncomfortable place for any wicketkeeper since Adam Gilchrist made his debut 25 years ago. England’s next summer of testing, then, is shaping up to begin with the same question as the last. Should it be Foakes behind the stumps, or Bairstow?
