"The gloves can be a sort of insurance"- Nasser Hussain wants Jonny Bairstow to prove that he is one of the best batsmen in the country
Former England captain Nasser Hussain claims Jonny Bairstow could be back to his best having been assigned wicket-keeping responsibilities for the fourth Test. Jos Buttler will miss the clash at The Oval to attend the birth of his second child.
Jonny Bairstow has been struggling with form as of late, especially after a poor trip to India earlier this year. He was not a part of the team that hosted New Zealand in a two-match series. Bairstow has managed to notch starts in his stints at the crease so far, but has been having difficulty converting them into prominent scores.
Hussain notes how Bairstow is at his best when he has a point to prove and backs him to prove that in the fourth test Writing for his column in The Daily Mail, Hussain wrote:
"It has become a bit of a Bairstow cliche, but probably with good reason: he’s never better than when he has a point to prove. So I’d be saying to him, ‘Well done, Jonny, you’re back where you want to be. Now go out and show why you’re still one of the best red-ball batsmen in the country."
Statistics do prove that Bairstow is more productive with the bat when he dons wicket-keeping gloves across the innings. While Hussain noted the changes Bairstow made in his technique for good, he explained how wicket-keepers are generally safer in the playing eleven when compared to the cut-throat competition in the rest of the batting unit.
"As he’s discovered since Jos Buttler finally became England’s Test keeper after the 2019 Ashes, specialist batsmen are more vulnerable after a few failures. The gloves can be a sort of insurance. Hold five catches and a duck might be more easily overlooked."
He still needs to deliver with a big innings: Nasser Hussain
Jonny Bairstow has often settled in at the crease this series having assessed the initial burst by the Indian pacers. However, he has not been able to convert those starts into big scores.
Nasser Hussain reckons Bairstow should forget the security and comfort that comes with the gloves. The former England captain feels Bairstow should continue to back the claims that he has more to offer than his swashbuckling approach in white-ball cricket. Hussain added:
"But he still needs to deliver with a big innings. In this series, his scores have been 29, 30, 57, 2 and 29. Not bad, but he’s got himself in several times without going on to three figures. He knows he can do better."
"That’s why he needs to forget he’s got the gloves again and focus on backing up what many pundits in this country believe — he’s a serious batsman, one of England’s best, and is capable of big hundreds," Hussain wrote
Jonny Bairstow will take over from Jos Buttler behind the stumps with one change certain in the England camp. They face India later today in the fourth Test of the series at The Oval.