"That fire is always in my belly" - Jonny Bairstow intends to answer critics with his appetite to play for England
England wicketkeeper-batter Jonny Bairstow is arguably in the form of his life following a stellar set of performances against New Zealand at home.
He scored 394 runs at an exemplary strike rate of 120.12, including two match-winning knocks at Nottingham and Leeds.
Making his debut in 2012 against the West Indies, Bairstow initially struggled for runs. He averaged in the mid-twenties for the first couple of years of his career but found a breakthrough with his maiden Test hundred.
He hit another snag following poor returns in 2021.
Test runs in the 2022 calendar year:
822 - USMAN KHAWAJA 🇦🇺
774 - Jonny Bairstow 🏴
754 - Joe Root 🏴
659 - Liton Das 🇧🇩
641 - Daryl Mitchell 🇳🇿
#SLvAUS
While he came back strong with centuries in the Ashes as well as the subsequent tour of the Caribbean, several people questioned his place in the side ahead of the home series against the BlackCaps.
Speaking to Nasser Hussain in an interview with the Daily Mail, Jonny Bairstow said:
"That fire is always in my belly. My appetite to play Test cricket for England will never cease and the passion, the will and the want are most definitely there. All I can say is that it's nice to have the backing of everybody."
The gloveman was not considered for the first two Ashes Tests last year. Coming into the side for the Boxing Day Test, Bairstow could only score 40 runs across both innings, but cemented his place with a blistering 113 at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Having a robust and aggressive style of play, Bairstow might be moving to new heights with a captain and coach that backs the same philosophy.
The Yorkshire player donned the gloves after a long time in the absence of Ben Foakes, who tested positive for COVID-19 during the third Test. Speaking about the prospect of keeping wickets for England in red-ball cricket again, he said:
"If the opportunity arises again, I'd love to do it. I kept for a couple of sessions at Headingley and it was good fun."
The 32-year-old also kept wickets in the fourth Test against India at The Oval after Jos Buttler left the squad to attend the birth of his child. He lost the wicket-keeping responsibilities after the 2019 Ashes in England.
"Playing against India is always a fantastic challenge" - Jonny Bairstow on the prospect of facing the Men In Blue
Jonny Bairstow faced a rough time on the subcontinent last year when England failed to qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) final after a 3-1 series defeat to India.
Scoring only 28 runs in four innings, which included a pair, after coming into the side for the latter part of the series, he struggled immensely against spin bowling.
Joe Root was probably the best batter for England.
Daryl Mitchell was the best batter for New Zealand.
But Jonny Bairstow was the best batter for Test cricket.
He compiled a decent set of scores when India visited England a few months later, but was still far from his best.
With circumstances now entirely different, with a complete overhaul of leadership and coaching between both sides, he is raring to face the visiting Indian team. Jonny Bairstow said:
"We will concentrate on us and try to put our best foot forward to win another game of cricket. Playing against India is always a fantastic challenge and it should be great fun."
The Ben Stokes-led side will face India in the rescheduled fifth Test later today (July 1) at Edgbaston, Birmingham.