England are being urged to make a late SOS call to Jonny Bairstow and bring him into the squad after Ben Stokes questioned his side’s mentality after the loss in Brisbane. Captain Stokes cut a frustrated figure after the Gabba Test with the allrounder all effort with the bat and the ball.
Stokes led a brief comeback for England in the third innings having top scored with 50 off 152 balls. The allrounder put England’s aggressive ‘Bazball’ approach away and showed some of his teammates how to play the conditions.
England are being urged to recall Jonny Bairstow (pictured left) and bring him into the Ashes squad after going 2-0 down. (Getty Images)
Although his efforts fell well short with Australia walking away with an eight wicket victory and taking a 2-0 Ashes lead heading to Adelaide. Stokes made sure to warn his players of the challenges they face to turn around the series having claimed they need to get stronger mentally.
“Teams that come to Australia can’t be soft or weak. There is no room for that in any dressing room I’m in charge of,” he said right after the defeat.
And ESPN CricInfo editor Andrew Miller has thrown out the left-field option of bringing back Bairstow for the struggling Ollie Pope. The wicketkeeper batter would enjoy another crack at the Aussies after Alex Carey run out Bairstow at Lord’s in 2023.
Carey was well within his right to dismiss Bairstow who had left his crease after the delivery. But the crowd got on top of the Aussies, which resulted in one of the most intense Ashes series ever.
Jonny Bairstow (pictured right) was involved in one of the most controversial Ashes moments ever.
And Miller feels Bairstow could replace Pope at No.3 to bring a fighting spirit to the side. “The one that England need to throw in badly, is Jonny Bairstow. England need passion, England need fight, England need someone who is going to be furious at the state of the world,” Miller said on ESPN.
“He will tee off, but not recklessly…he has the street smarts to react to situations and he has the inner fury to find what his team so desperately need. He is the ideal lieutenant.
Miller added: “Get Jonny Bairstow in there. That’s the only way…it’s crisis mode now. England need something, from somehwere, and they need passion and they need proven ability to score runs in Australia, which he has. Throw him in there.”
Jamie Smith has replaced the 36-year-old in the England side, but there is no doubt a number of the visitors’ batters are struggling against Mitchell Starc and the home team’s bowling attack. While Miller is leaning on Bairstow’s passion to lift the side, his record doesn’t necessarily scream recall.
Jonny Bairstow’s record against Australia
Bairstow has scored 1,406 runs against Australia in the Ashes across 26 Test matches. This has come at an average of 31.24. His average improves slightly in Australia to 32.29 with both his centuries coming away from home. Bairstow’s recored suggests he has never dominated the Aussies and against the likes of Starc and Boland it is highly unlikely he will be seen as the answer. Although England are seeking a solution to their batting woes.
England lacking depth on Ashes tour
Other than Joe Root, the England batters have struggled so far in Perth and Brisbane with some fans calling for change to the batting line-up. Jacob Bethel appears to be the batter next in line for England, but his returns on the Lions tour have not been good.
The batter has scored 3, 70, 44, 16, 19 and 71. Across 25 matches, Bethel is yet to score a maiden first-class century. He is hardly putting his hand up to face Australia’s elite bowling attack and with Pat Cummins expected back in Adelaide, more question marks are being asked of England’s depth.
One of the few shining lights for England was 21-year-old Asa Tribe. The youngster, who has played five ODIs for England, scored the only century for the Lions. But England would be taking a huge gamble throwing Tribe into the XI for Adelaide with his limited experience in red-ball cricket.
Ben Stokes called for a change heading into the Adelaide Test after England went down 2-0.