According to Sir Geoffrey Boycott, England has tried and failed twice with Bazball. England’s first Test series loss with the Bazball approach came against India, 3-1, after a draw in the Ashes series. He asserted that England deserved to feel hurt because they had a chance to defeat both of their opponents.
The latest individual to cast doubt on the Ben Stokes-led team’s performance in Test cricket is former cricketer Geoffrey Boycott.
Boycott praised the English cricket team for their exciting play and complimented his side’s aggressive style of cricket. The former cricket player did, however, also say that he enjoys winning more.
‘I Love it, But I Love Winning More’: Geoffrey Boycott’s Blunt Take on Bazball after England lost the series
In the IND vs ENG Ranchi Test, India won convincingly 3-1 to clinch the series. While the hosts rallied to win at Vizag, Rajkot, and Ranchi to seal the series, England seized the lead by winning the Hyderabad test. The triumph at Ranchi guaranteed England’s first test series defeat in the era of Bazball.
Geoffrey Boycott stated in his column for The Telegraph:
“Bazball has given Test cricket a shot in the arm and England deserves praise for that. At times, I love it. But I love winning more and England has failed to beat the best two teams in the world: Australia and now India”.
Geoffrey Boycott refers to England’s draw with Australia in the Ashes early in the previous year. The Australians kept the prized trophy after leveling the series 2-2, as the Brendon McCullum-coached team was unable to win the Ashes while playing at home. In his article, Boycott said: “The batting cost them winning the Ashes.”
“He made a big error” – Sir Geoffrey Boycott On Ben Stokes opening with 2 spinners in the 4th innings of the 4th test
Ben Stokes’ decision to open with two spinners in the fourth innings in Ranchi, when they had just 192 to defend, was questioned by cricketer Geoffrey Boycott. Boycott believes it was a “huge mistake” and implies that Tom Hartley and Joe Root lack the necessary experience to bowl with the new ball.
Stokes brought in spinners Joe Root and Tom Hartley because the pitch was being tricky and favouring spin. Even though the duo gave the Indian openers some anxiety, they were unable to take the early advantage as Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal cut 40 runs off of eight overs on the third day.
“England only had 192 to defend. I like Stokes’s captaincy but I thought he made a big error by opening the bowling with two spinners, Root and Tom Hartley. In 25 minutes at the end of day three India easily scored 40 priceless runs. What is just as important is that it gave their innings momentum. It was imperative to make runs hard to come by,” Geoffrey Boycott wrote.
Geoffrey Boycott believed that James Anderson, a great pacer who does not typically allow many runs to be scored, should have been the first bowler used by the England captain to open the second innings. The hosts’ rescue came from Shubman Gill and team India captain Rohit Sharma, who each made a half-century in the second innings of the fourth Test.