Bairstow: Ben has taken his chance but I’m fighting to win back my place

Wicketkeeper says he’s pushing hard to get back into England side despite Foakes’ fine start to Test career

JONNY BAIRSTOW admits he faces a fight to regain his place in England’s Test team following Ben Foakes’s stunning introduction to international cricket during the first two matches of this series in Sri Lanka.

The Surrey wicketkeeper was only afforded his big chance following the ankle injury Bairstow sustained playing football in the pre-match warm-up before last month’s fourth one-day international - the latest football-related injury to befall an England cricketer over the years.

Foakes has grabbed his opportunity, making a huge impact with the bat from No7 in the order, scoring a match-defining hundred on debut in Galle and an important unbeaten 65 during England’s second innings in Kandy last week that helped set up a win that saw Joe Root’s team wrap up the series with a match to spare.

It is only natural Bairstow is disappointed at how things have panned so far on this tour and he admits that watching the 25-year-old do so well has been hard on a personal level.

“Of course,” he told TalkSport. “I’ve worked hard and had that spot for two-and-a-half years and over the 40 or so Tests I think my overall average is about 42 so to do that – keep wicket, bat at five or six or seven in all different conditions I ’ m ve r y p ro u d o f that.

“And yes, Ben came in a n d h a s p l a ye d we l l . Look, selection is above my pay grade t h a t ’s why you want to be