Tags: England,
India,
Joseph Edward Root,
Bazball
Published on: Feb 25, 2024
Experienced England batter Joe Root has stated that his team’s ‘Bazball’ approach in Test cricket is not about being arrogant, but about getting the best out of each other. The batter was speaking after his defiant hundred in the fourth Test against India in Ranchi helped England recover after a poor start.
After winning the first Test in Hyderabad by 28 runs, England lost the next two games to go 2-1 down. They were hammered in the third Test in Rajkot by 434 runs after which the visitors’ ultra-aggressive approach with the bat came in for a lot of scrutiny.
Speaking after the end of the second day’s play in Ranchi on Saturday, February 24, Root elaborated on what exactly Bazball means to England and how they view it as a team.
“There have been times recently when the best way to do that is by being a bit more aggressive. It’s like if I connect with that shot and execute it better, (Jasprit) Bumrah will be under pressure and our outlook on the game is very different again,” he explained.
“It’s not about being arrogant… Bazball is a word that’s used a lot but that’s your word, that’s not how we look at it. It’s about how can we get the best out of each other as a team, how we’re going to get better as a group. You’re not always going to get it right but we’ll continue to keep trying to improve,” the 33-year-old added.
Root also admitted that it is important as a batter to keep evolving so that one can counter the skills of high quality bowlers.
“The reason I’ve played as many games as I have is that I’ve not wanted to stand still as a player, I have to try to keep evolving. If you keep on playing the same way over and over again, teams work you out, figure you out and find your weaknesses,” the former England captain said.
“They are world-class bowlers for a reason and there’s a lot of information out there. So if you don’t try to get better and find different ways of scoring runs, you’ll get found out. You’re not always going to get it right but if you’re not willing to make mistakes every now and then and sometimes get it wrong it doesn’t matter anyway because they’re still going to find you out,” Root added.
Root remained unbeaten on 122 from 274 balls, a knock which featured 10 fours, as England recovered from 112/5 at lunch on Day 1 to post 353. In reply, India crumbled to 219/7 by stumps as young off-spinner Shoaib Bashir claimed 4/84. Left-arm spinner Tom Hartley also claimed 2/47 as India found themselves on the back foot despite Yashasvi Jaiswal’s 73.
–By A Cricket Correspondent
