THE BAZBALL DEBATE Should Team India Adopt it?

The English summer is truly underway as the Ashes series began with a bang. But one couldn’t help noticing the total contrast between the first Ashes Test and the Word Test Championship (WTC) final where India figured. Australia defeated England by 2 wickets in the final hour of the final day. In sharp contrast, the WTC final was a laborious affair and hardly seemed a contest between the Top 2 Test teams. The pulsating first Ashes test was like a boxing match between two heavyweights, both refusing to budge. In the process, the highly entertaining Bazball style of the English team, one which possibly led to their narrow defeat, has now ignited a hot debate among cricket experts.

Bazball is a concept of allout aggressive cricket and has been introduced by Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes as a template for the England team once they took over as head coach and captain in mid2022. Since then, England have won 11 tests with only 3 defeats, including in the first Ashes test. In fact, their batters have been so aggressive that English opener Zack Crawley fearlessly hit the first ball of the Ashes series for a searing boundary!

This style of play is as much about batting attractively as bowling with purpose. Other countries have played similar cricket but not with such consistency. Bazball admirers believe Test cricket needs this approach to remain above white ball formats as the finest expression of the sport. Many now see Bazball as an attractive way to keep Test cricket alive and engaging.

The entertainment that the first Ashes Test provided, despite having been played on one of the most docile pitches, was unmatched. The Edgbaston test saw sell-out crowds. England promised entertainment, and they delivered big on it. From the crowds to the Australian players, everyone was on the edge of their seats, when the first Test boiled down to the final session. Two contrasting styles going head-to-head was a treat to watch as the conventional cricket of the Aussies clashed with England’s unabashed Bazball style.

With England losing the first test, many are now questioning their attacking game which included a declaration on the first day itself with Joe Root batting on a 100 plus. Critics claim Bazball is often too one-dimensional to succeed in Test Cricket. Superstars like Ponting and Nasser Husain have been openly vocal in slamming this approach. They argue that while England’s aggressive template may be exciting, it is also selfdefeating. Many claim that insistence on a super-charged game all the time actually makes it inflexible.

Some experts believe that in a five-day game where match situations change and strong opponents like Australia evolve counter strategies, there will often be a need to reset. Tactically, a continuous adherence to an ultra-aggressive approach could make decision-making of the rivals rather easy as they could anticipate exactly what’s going to come at them.

The current Ashes series has now become a virtual referendum on Bazball and England’s defeat has stoked a lot of criticism, led by several former players from both sides. But Stokes and McCullum have promised to continue with Bazball in Ashes series - they are not planning to backdown despite the setback in the first test. After the Ashes, the Bazball approach will also be tested in Indian conditions when the Ben Stokes-led side tour India for a five-match Test series in 2024.

Are there any tactical changes that the Indian team can draw out of Bazball approach after their consecutive defeats in the WTC finals? The lesson for India is not just to adopt the new model but also bring in players who can implement the style on the ground. In the recent WTC Final, the Indians tried to approach the second innings with an aggressive mindset but it did not help their cause because they simply did not have players who could do that for long. Rohit, Pujara, Rahane and Virat have been great players for India but they don’t seem the most-suited for this style.

India won’t find aggressive batters in the Test arena overnight. For that purpose, the best bet would be for the BCCI to start implementing Bazball approach in India A tours and pick players who will take this style and Indian Test cricket forward. Fortunately, the Indian Test squad announced for the tour to the West Indies has young talents like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan and Ruturaj Gaikwad. If they play in their naturally aggressive style, the revamp of the national side could be achieved quite quickly. Given the dipping interest in Test cricket in India in recent decades, Bazball could well be one crucial way of reviving spectator interest in the longest format of the game.

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

Siddhaarth Mahan The writer is a specialist on Sports and Cinema who works as an actor in the Hindi film industry