Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra has taken a dig at England’s “Bazball” approach after the hosts played patiently on day one (Thursday) of the ongoing Third Test at Lord’s. England played a very different game on Thursday, remaining vigilant and embracing a cautious approach in their innings. This was a big shift in their game from their aggressive approach that England have developed over the years since the arrival of Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes at the helm of affairs. Chopra particularly pointed out the risk-free approach adopted by senior batter Joe Root, who had struggled to score runs in the past two tests. Root brought up his 67th Test half-century off 102 balls, featuring seven boundaries.
“Where is the Bazball, sir? There used to be a thing called Bazball, where is it nowadays? It's being said that it's lost somewhere in St John's Wood, because you played the entire day and scored only 250 runs," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
“This was Joe Root's slowest half-century in the Bazball era. Ever since the era started, he had started hitting, and many times we asked the question why he was in such a hurry. Let others play as they want, but Joe Root is like the root of a tree. So, he too realized that he hadn't scored runs in the first two matches and that he would bat respectfully now," Chopra added.
Despite playing carefully, England lost four batters, closing the day with 251/4 with Root and Stokes unbeaten on (99 off 191) and (39 off 102) respectively. England lost openers Ben Stokes and Zak Crawley early with Nitish Kumar Reddy nabbing them. Ollie Pope, however, maintained discipline, forging a 109-run stand with Joe Root before falling to Ravindra Jadeja for 44. Harry Brook (11), meanwhile, was removed by Jasprit Bumrah. Earlier, England skipper Ben Stokes had decided to bat after winning the toss.