Jonny Bairstow has been backed by England captain Ben Stokes, who has claimed that the batter will come good despite his recent poor run of form. Bairstow has failed to get going so far in the ongoing Test series. However, Stokes has rubbished the noise around Bairstow and backed him to come good, saying that he has contributed to the team for a long time.
Calls to drop Bairstow from the lineup for the Ranchi Test have emerged, and Alastair Cook has suggested removing the batter from the firing line.
“He has faced challenges during this tour, and India is a demanding environment to sustain such difficulties. I’m removing Jonny from the intense scrutiny to safeguard the player,” he said. Cook also suggested to replace Bairstow with Dan Lawrence.
However, England has kept faith in Bairstow, and he was a part of the lineup for the Ranchi Test. Stokes, while talking in the press conference, said that Bairstow has been integral to their playing style.
“If batsmen struggle briefly, people will question it. I see it differently, I focus on Jonny’s consistent contributions during my captaincy. He’s proven himself and played a vital role in our team,” Stokes said ahead of the fourth Test.
In his last six innings, Bairstow has scored just 102 runs at an average of 26. He scored 0 and 4 in the Rajkot Test against India, prompting questions about his form. Bairstow’s dismissal for a duck in his first innings in Rajkot made him the batter with the most ducks against India in Test cricket, tallying up to eight ducks.
Despite this, Ben Stokes has backed Bairstow to come good. Despite calls to drop Bairstow from the lineup for the Ranchi Test, England has chosen to keep faith in him.
England head coach Brendon McCullum has also backed Jonny Bairstow. He believes that Bairstow is a wonderful player and that a top-quality Bairstow is as good as anyone in any conditions. McCullum has also stressed the importance of giving Bairstow confidence and reminding him that he is a good player.
England’s XI for the fourth Test at Rajkot: Ben Stokes (captain), Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Foakes (wicketkeeper), Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, Ollie Robinson, James Anderson