"There were one of the few technical deficiencies" - Shane Watson lauds Jonny Bairstow's transformation in Test cricket
Former Australian all-rounder Shane Watson has showered praise on England's Jonny Bairstow after his breathtaking century in the ongoing Test against India at Edgbaston.
The Yorkshire wicketkeeper-batter has been the lynchpin of the re-modelled cricket England have played under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum. He gunned down New Zealand with his counter-attacking knocks before unleashing his antics against India on Day 3 of the Birmingham Test.
His 140-ball 106 helped the hosts post 284 after being reduced to 84/5 in the first innings.
Speaking on ICC's Youtube channel on Monday, Watson lauded Bairstow's transformation and stated that he should continue playing the same way. He said:
"I played against Jonny Bairstow in the early part of his career and there were one of the few technical deficiencies that he had at that time and also wasn't really sure what game plan he should have.
"Now he's really discovered across all formats and now Test cricket exactly what works for him and that is just taking the bowlers, putting pressure on the bowlers from ball one and now there's no reason why he can't continue to do this till the end of his career," [sic] he added.
Bairstow vs Kohli 😳
Jonny Bairstow has played down an old-fashioned battle of words with Virat Kohli 😅
https://t.co/mnry6F4Zj0
Bairstow has the most runs in Test cricket in 2022 with 882 under his belt from eight matches at an average of 67.69 and a strike rate of over 75. He also has five centuries and a fifty to his name.
Shane Watson feels England's coach-captain duo will bring the best out of Bairstow
Watson further believes that having Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum by his side will only strengthen Bairstow's confidence going forward. On this, he said:
"He's just discovered the format that worked for him in the shorter formats and now to see him do what he's doing in Test cricket, he has found that formula.
"He's got just got to keep repeating that over and over again and that's going to be reinforced by Ben Stokes and Brendon McCllum because that's the way that they play the game," he added. "They're going to continue to reinforce that to Jonny that go out, do your thing because it's incredibly good."
Jonny Bairstow has hit five Test centuries in 2022 – the most by a player in this calendar year 💥
#WTC23 | #ENGvIND https://t.co/dbhnKYxE2g
However, for now, England will want Bairstow to put his best foot forward in the second innings as they look to avoid a series defeat against India.