THE BAIR NECESSITY
Vital Jonny knock may not save Stokes
NO one appears better suited to the choke-out nature of England’s Test reinvention than Jonny Bairstow.
The batsman’s high-speed summer continued at Edgbaston as he bagged a third consecutive century and a fifth in just eight Tests this calendar year.
However, this proved the only highlight of England’s effort to peg back India in this fifth Test.
The fact that he alone carried the fight with a superb 106 – the tourists establishing a 132-run first innings lead extended to 257, three down at the close – could lead to a first loss under skipper Ben Stokes.
England have successfully chased 277, 299 and 276 in comefrom-behind victories against New Zealand under the Brendon McCullum-Stokes axis.
Yet against an India attack that looks a step up on even Tim Southee and Trent Boult, a first win in their history for India in Birmingham and a 3-1 series win looks the most likely outcome.
England will take plenty from this Test and not all of it good – particularly the form of their openers – yet, in Bairstow, they have the hottest batsman in world cricket this year.
In three-and-a-half Tests this summer, he has scored 485 runs at a strike rate of 110.
Two-thirds of his runs have come in boundaries – 75 in all and 12 sixes – at a rate of one every 5.9 deliveries.
It is frustrating for England that his 2022 highlights have come in a firefighting role having come to the crease with England having less than 60 on the board – at 36-4, 48-4, 56-3, 17-3 and yesterday 44-3.
Bairstow, a late call-up to the Ashes debacle last winter, is never better than when having a point to prove or, for that matter, an opponent in his face and it was the latter yesterday with Virat Kohli stoking the fire.
While that tactic did not work well, India were in the ascendancy throughout the day, with their strike bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami impressive.
And the pace and aggression of Mohammed Siraj also proved a real handful.
Bairstow’s partners were largely unconvincing aside from a cameo from wicketkeeper Sam Billings.
Stokes (inset, left) was scratchy, dropped on 18 and again by Bumrah on 25, the India captain making amends by taking a belter next ball, diving sharply to his left.
Bairstow (inset, right) took England to 241 before becoming the seventh wicket down, Kohli taking a high edge off the bowling of Shami at first slip.
By the conclusion of England’s innings India’s cushion was 132 runs and a significant one.
Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad grabbed early wickets and Joe Root pulled off a stunning reaction to grab a rebound off Billings’ gloves to prolong Kohli’s 32-Test stretch without a hundred, a run which goes all the way back to November 2019.
But with India closing on 125-3, even Bairstow might not put this fire out.