Geoffrey Boycott criticized England’s coach and captain for their aggressive “Bazball” approach, stating that prioritizing attack over strategy led to their defeat against India in the second test.
India leveled the five-match series against England with a convincing 106-run victory in the second test held at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam. Former England cricketer Geoffrey Boycott expressed his discontent with England’s coach and captain, criticizing their aggressive “Bazball” approach.
In his column for The Telegraph, Boycott lamented England’s loss, attributing it to their adherence to Bazball, which he deemed a flawed strategy. He urged for a return to substance over spectacle, asserting that the pursuit of entertainment shouldn’t compromise strategic gameplay.
“Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes are besotted with attack, attack, attack. It’s as if they say ‘if we can’t win, we will go down in glorious failure instead.’ But there is no glory in failure or defeat,” Boycott wrote.
“Bazball is great entertainment when it comes off. But once you believe in an ideal over substance, then you have lost the plot. Today England gave the match away. Bazball was a failure. Scoring at five an over was entertaining but too many batsmen gave their wickets away after good starts. The best way to achieve a total of nearly 400 is by one of the batsmen scoring a big hundred. Looking to go after good bowlers and scoring quickly comes with risk,” he added.
Root’s aggressive approach, influenced by the Bazball strategy, led to his downfall, as he attempted to hit big shots from the outset and was dismissed for just 16 runs.
“Bazball cost Joe Root his wicket. As soon as he came in, he was dancing down the pitch trying to hit it over the top and very soon swiped it up in the air. He only scored 16. England’s best technical batsman is normally a busy player who scores at a good rate, but trying to go after the bowling as soon as he comes in takes him out of his comfort zone,” Boycott further wrote.
During the 10-day gap between the second and third Tests, the visiting team opted to travel to Abu Dhabi for preparation.
Last Updated on February 8, 2024
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