We asked Google AI if England can win Ashes 2023 by playing 'Bazball'; find out if it agrees with Ben Stokes
England’s ‘Bazball’ style of play was a matter of big debate heading into Ashes 2023. Their ultra-aggressive approach to Test cricket continues to divide opinion. The hosts went down to Australia by two wickets in the opening game of Ashes 2023 at Edgbaston in a thrilling finish.
Sticking to their philosophy of playing an entertaining and enterprising brand of cricket, England declared their first innings on Day 1 at 393-8. They did well to secure a slender first innings lead of seven runs despite Usman Khawaja’s defiant ton scored in traditional mode.
England, though, went hard with the bat in the second innings as well and were bowled out for 273 in 66.2 overs. They then reduced to Australia to 227-8 after the visitors were set to chase 281. However, Pat Cummins (44*) played a captain’s knock to take the Aussies home in the company of Nathan Lyon (16*).
Despite the loss and criticism from many quarters, England have maintained that they will continue to play the same brand of cricket, taking risks to try and unsettle their opponents.
Human experts are clearly divided over ‘Bazball’. So we sought the intervention of artificial intelligence. Here’s what Google AI (Bard) had to say when asked if England can win Ashes 2023 by playing ‘Bazball’. According to Bard:
“It's too early to say for sure whether England can win the Ashes 2023 by playing Bazball. The new approach to cricket, which is characterised by an aggressive batting style and a positive mindset, has certainly been successful so far.
"England won the Test series against New Zealand 3-0. However, the Ashes is a different beast altogether. Australia is a very strong team, and they will be determined to win back the urn.”
“That’s the benefit for us the way they’re playing.”
Marnus Labuschagne believes Bazball is actually helping the Aussies - and says they played "under par" in their first Test win.
ASHES DAILY: bit.ly/3NNoziX https://t.co/AsrobeigJl
It, however, added that if England can continue to play with the same intensity and aggression, as they have done in recent weeks, they have a chance of winning the Ashes.
“However, they will need to be at their best, and they will need to find a way to counter Australia's own aggressive bowling attack,” Google AI opined.
“Only time will tell whether Bazball will be enough to win the Ashes for England. However, it is certainly an exciting new approach to cricket, and it will be fascinating to see how it develops in the coming months."
Pros and cons of Bazball, according to Google AI
Delving deeper into the debate, Bard shared the pros and cons of England’s ‘Bazball’ approach.
Pros
It is a very aggressive and exciting style of cricket to watch.
It can be very effective against teams not used to playing against it.
It can help to build confidence and momentum in the team.
Cons
It can be risky if it's not executed properly.
It can be difficult to sustain over a long period of time.
It can be susceptible to good bowling.
Concluding its thoughts on the debate that has engulfed the cricket world, Bard said:
“Overall, Bazball is a new and exciting approach to cricket that has the potential to be very successful. However, it is still too early to say whether it will be enough to win the Ashes for England.”
Cumball has defeated Bazball. https://t.co/olmDR2Bxhn
Meanwhile, England will look to square the five-match Ashes series at 1-1 when they take on Australia in the second Ashes 2023 Test at Lord’s starting Wednesday (June 28).