"I'm just trying to take the complexities out of batting" - Jonny Bairstow on his aggressive brand of play
England batter Jonny Bairstow believes that he is trying to keep things simple with his raw, unabashed style of batting. He is arguably in the form of his life following an exceptional home series against New Zealand, where he tallied 394 runs at an astonishing strike rate of 120.12.
The wicket-keeper batter was barely holding on to his place in the Test playing XI after poor returns in the previous calendar year. However, he now feels right in the zone playing an aggressive brand of cricket under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.
Amassing only a solitary fifty across 10 Tests in 2021, Bairstow soon turned a corner. Recalled into the side to don the gloves in the latter part of the Ashes, the 32-year-old scored a career-defining hundred at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).
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Opining that cricket is often over-complicated by players, Bairstow told Nasser Hussain in an interview with the Daily Mail:
"This is a simple game that is complicated by those of us who play it. I'm trying to remain as clear as possible and have no doubts about my ability or the way I'm going about my batting."
Bairstow continued:
"It's been a bit of a rollercoaster but since coming in for the third Test of the Ashes at the MCG up until now, it's been great fun. I'm just trying to take the complexities out of batting and keeping it as simple as possible."
The Yorkshire batter took his form from the Ashes to the Caribbean tour, where he scored a patient 140 in the first Test at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. Despite a poor start to the series against New Zealand, he found his rhythm and scored two centuries in England's 3-0 rout.
"I really do hope it's grabbing people's attention" - Jonny Bairstow on England's intention with aggressive brand of cricket in Tests
The intrigue was high when the new-look England were pitted against the reigning World Test Championship (WTC) holders. And while the Ben Stokes-led side mixed caution with aggression in their win at Lord's, they went all out for the remainder of the series to execute a whitewash.
Hoping to inspire the next generation with their ruthlessness, the wicket-keeper batter said:
"We were inspired to play cricket as kids and we want to inspire the next generation to come and watch the game and play it."
He concluded:
"Yes, there have been some amazing times but I think the way we are going about our cricket is really exciting. I really do hope it's grabbing people's attention. That's exactly what we want to be doing,"
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Bairstow will be seen in action later today after being named in the England playing XI for the rescheduled fifth Test against India. The teams will take to the field at Edgbaston, Birmingham to settle the series, which is currently poised at 2-1 in favor of the visitors.