"There's a reason why I'm in the team" - Jonny Bairstow's reply to critics after crucial knock in ENG vs NAM T20 World Cup match

England's veteran wicketkeeper-batter Jonny Bairstow has learned to deal with criticism as part and parcel of the game and isn't shy of giving it back when needed. There were question marks around his place in the XI, with players like Sam Curran on the bench.

However, Bairstow played a crucial cameo of 31 off just 18 balls against Namibia in a rain-affected game and helped England post a challenging total of 122 runs in their 10 overs.

Speaking to reporters after the game, here's what Jonny Bairstow was quoted as saying by IANS about questions on his spot:

"It's not the first time that people have had a go at me, is it? So yeah, you take it on the chin, and you crack on. But look, at the end of the day, there's a reason why I've played for so long, and there's a reason why I'm in the team.

"So maybe sometimes the opinions and the views that come through certain people's eyes are incorrect and maybe need to look at themselves."

Bairstow's cameo coupled with Harry Brook's blazing 47(20) proved to be the difference between the two sides as Namibia fell comfortably short (84/3) of the revised target of 126.

Jonny Bairstow on his middle-order role in T20 World Cup

Jonny Bairstow is arguably at his best as an opener in T20 cricket and him being asked to bat at No. 3 or No. 4 was a move that raised quite a few eyebrows. However, Bairstow believes he can adapt to whatever is asked of him by the team and is looking forward to having more impactful partnerships with Harry Brook going forward.

On this, he stated:

"You go out there and you perform in the positions that you're asked to do so. That partnership in the middle there, like I said, after losing two early on was an imperative partnership and something that, look, if Harry and I can bat for a period of time through the middle, there's going to be some decent scores."

Scotland lost their final group game against Australia, which meant that England qualified as the second team from Group B for the Super 8 phase as they had a better net run rate than the Scots.