England‘s controversial Bazball approach to cricket is being torn apart following a catastrophic series loss in Pakistan.
England won the first match in Multan in what was a run-fest on a flat deck, but then fell victim to Pakistan’s mischievous pitch doctoring and had no answers for the hosts’ all-spin attack in the second and third games.
They crumbled to be bowled out for 112 in the second innings in Rawalpindi to hand Pakistan a nine-wicket victory and their first series win at home in a long time.
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Since sweeping Pakistan 3-0 the last time they travelled there in 2022, England’s Test record is 10 wins and 10 losses from 21 matches – the only draw being a rained out Ashes clash in Manchester.
They sit sixth on the World Test Championship standings. They are statistically average at best.
The Bazball philosophy – effectively instructing batters to entertain with fast scoring and swashbuckling strokeplay no matter the conditions or match scenario – achieves its purpose in some regard but can also make for embarrassing performances for England.
It has reduced the possibility of drawn matches, but fails to respect inherent aspects of Test cricket like attrition, tactical decision making, adapting to conditions, or defensively weathering the storm when an opponent is relentlessly pressing an advantage.
England has brought a Twenty20 feel to Test cricket – cheap thrills like big sixes that entertain fans most likely not familiar with or respectful of the game of cricket.
Coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes have stubbornly maintained their purpose is to reimagine the sport but in doing so the team is being found out by opponents with quality spin bowling.
Even England greats now realise the current Test team are flat track bullies.
“It shouldn’t be so drastic that you play so well on flat pitches and you can hit through the line, but then the moment it grips and you can’t play like that, you’re then a little bit lost,” legend Nasser Hussain said on Sky Sports following Sunday’s loss.
“And three of their top six (batters) seem to be lost in these conditions. I’m talking about Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope – who has hard hands – or (Ben) Stokes in Asia. His last 10 scores are very low in these conditions, and he used to be one of our best players of spin.
“Within that side, I want to see a bit more learning. It can’t just be ‘that’s the way we play’.
“I want to see more learning and improvement when the pitches turn.”
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England hasn’t won an Ashes series since 2015 when they beat Australia 3-2 in the motherland.
They’ve been thumped twice Down Under since then, and held on for two 2-2 series draws at home.
The organisation has seemed to have at least one eye on the 2025-26 trip to Australia for several months already, and Hussain questioned why.
“All we ever hear about with England is the Ashes away (next year). But we play so many series before the Ashes, and conditions here (in Asia) are so different from Australia,” Hussain said.
“Someone like Zak Crawley, his position should come under threat, but when I say that, people say ‘well, I think he’ll be all right in Australia’.
“That doesn’t matter here, this month. How are you going to play this month?
“How are you going to be consistent in these conditions? The same with Ollie Pope… it can’t always be feast or famine with him.
“It can’t just be about one series every four years away from home. You’re almost not taking Pakistan seriously.”
The pitches in Australia and England aren’t as conducive to spin bowling and so it makes sense spin will be less of a factor in Ashes series.
England lost 4-1 in India earlier this year.
McCullum admits his side doesn’t handle spinning decks at all.
“When teams come to England, ideally we play on the surfaces that we’re more accustomed to, which allow our strengths to really flourish and maybe paper over some of the weaknesses as well, which every team naturally has,” McCullum said following Sunday’s loss.
“I’m a little bit surprised it’s taken Pakistan as long as it has. Because when you go to Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, the ball is always going to turn.
“It’ll be interesting to see over the next couple of years whether they persist with these types of surfaces, but certainly there are no excuses from our point of view. We had our chances, and we ran second.”
England does not play another Test in Asia until 2027, which is when, perhaps strategically, McCullum and Stokes have committed to leading the Test team until.