BRING IT ON!
Bairstow says he’s in the form of his life for Test comeback
Jonny Bairstow has insisted he is in the form of his life as he prepares to resurrect a test career that has been on hold for more than a year.
He is likely to bat at no 3 in next week’s series opener in sri Lanka, evoking memories of the fiery hundred he made from that position in Colombo in november 2018 — the most recent of his six test tons.
that innings felt very Bairstow, with a point to prove after losing the gloves to Ben Foakes. now, with rory Burns’s paternity leave necessitating another rejig of the top order — but with Jos Buttler behind the stumps — Bairstow has a different agenda. at the age of 31, he intends to show he can cut it as a specialist batsman.
‘it’s 70 tests i’ve played now,’ he said ahead of England’s two-day intra- squad match in Hambantota. ‘People keep saying, “Points to prove”. to be honest, i think i’ve answered a lot of questions in the past. this is now a time for me to enjoy going into a test series and relish the opportunity.
‘Last time i played in sri Lanka, i got a hundred batting at three. i’ve batted a few times there, and generally done all right. if that is the case, then bring it on.’
in fact, only six of Bairstow’s 123 test innings have been at first drop, bringing him the Colombo century, plus 52 soon after in antigua. and there will also be the pressure of playing his first test since December 2019 in south africa — a year in which he totalled just 334 test runs at 18.
But while Bairstow can be prickly about the ‘point to prove’ tag, there is little doubt he thrives on a challenge. the most recent example came in november, when he responded to being moved down to no 4 in the t20 side with a format-best 86 not out off 48 balls.
‘i think my game’s in the best place it’s been,’ he said. ‘the work i’ve put in and the runs i’ve got left in the tank over the next three, four, five, however many years it may be, mean i believe i can be a huge contributor in the test arena. i’ve proved it in the past.’
with the touring side expecting their latest Covid-19 test results today, Bairstow also warned about the toll of bubble life in a year when England are set to play 17 tests. ‘you are looking at 17 weeks just for the preparation and the games,’ he said. ‘you are looking at four or five months. that will be tricky to manage, but there is also support in place to help.’ INTRA-SQUAD WARM-UP (Hambantota) — Team Root: Crawley, Bracey, Root, Lawrence, Foakes, Overton, Robinson, Leach, Wood, Anderson, Parkinson. Team Buttler: Sibley, Pope, Bairstow, Buttler, Curran, Bess, Stone, Broad, Mahmood, Crane, Virdi.