Back home, England face backlash for Bazball

London, February 19

Former England captains Nasser Hussain and Michael Vaughan have criticised the team’s Bazball approach in the ongoing Test series against India, saying the visitors need to apply themselves based on the match situation instead of being guided by their attacking philosophy.

This England team are hell-bent on doing things their way, and ‘saving Test cricket’… But ultimately they have to be better than that now. They didn’t win in New Zealand, they didn’t win the Ashes, and if they carry on like this, they are going to lose in India. — Michael Vaughan, Former England captain

India registered their biggest-ever Test win, annihilating England by 434 runs in the third Test in Rajkot. Chasing 557, the tourists were bundled out for 122. The home side leads 2-1 in the five-match series with games left in Ranchi and Dharamsala.

“This was the worst defeat under (Ben) Stokes and Brendon McCullum, and one that exposed their method. They cannot take the aggressive at every opportunity, they have to pick their moments,” Vaughan wrote in a column.

Hussain echoed the sentiment. “Bazball is about being attacking but it is also about soaking up pressure,” Hussain said.

In contrast, India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has two double hundreds in the series so far, Shubman Gill (91) and debutant Sarfaraz Khan played mature knocks in Rajkot, taking time to settle in before going for their strokes.

“They need to look at the way Jaiswal and Shubman Gill played on Day 3. They soaked up the pressure for 30 or 40 balls, and then they started to get boundaries. That is what Test batting is about. India have scored 875 runs in 228.5 overs. No one can tell me it’s been boring watching India bat here,” Vaughan wrote.

Things have gone downhill for England since winning the series-opener in Hyderabad. The visiting team’s batters have displayed poor judgement, giving away the advantage to the hosts.

Vaughan added that England “have to be careful that people around don’t think they are smug”.

“They have to be careful that people around don’t think they are smug, or above their station…they are in a bubble. All that matters is their dressing room, and fun. There is a bit more to Test cricket than that,” Vaughan wrote. “This England team are hell-bent on doing things their way, and ‘saving Test cricket’…But ultimately they have to be better than that now. They didn’t win in New Zealand, they didn’t win the Ashes, and if they carry on like this, they are going to lose in India,” he added.