'You need to see on what kind of pitches they are playing': Ishan Kishan gives a strong verdict on England's 'Bazball'

Team India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan believes that England's 'Bazball' is interesting but the execution of that approach depends largely on the condition and pitch on offer.

SportsTak

• Tue • 25 Jul 2023

Team India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan believes that England's 'Bazball' is interesting but the execution of that approach depends largely on the condition and pitch on offer. Kishan pointed out that scoring runs with aggressive intent on a flat wicket is different from executing the same on pitches that offer spin and bounce. The young left-handed batter also reckons that playing aggressively all the time can turn out to be detrimental.

"It is not possible that you can play that fast everyday, it depends upon situation also," Kishan told reporters.

"England are batting quick but you need to see on what kind of pitches they are playing, mostly where we play it is not easy to bat because there is a turn and bounce.

"If wicket is flat, where you can score quick, and the need of team is to get runs quickly, then I think you can take on that action. I don’t think it is necessary that we must play in an aggressive manner in every match, but whenever there will be a need of playing attacking cricket, we have got enough firepower’s in our ranks. I don’t think you can always play attacking shots in Test cricket," he added.

Batting for just the third time in Test cricket, Kishan gave an account of his fearless approach with the bat on Day 4 of the ongoing Test match against India and West Indies in Trinidad on July 23 (Sunday). The swashbuckling wicketkeeper-batter played a lightning cameo and smacked Windies bowlers around the park before Indian skipper Rohit Sharma decided to declare the innings.

Kishan, who is known for taking attack to the opposition team's bowling attack, registered a thumping half-century and remained unbeaten on 52 runs off 34 balls with the help of four fours and two sixes.

In the process, Kishan broke former captain MS Dhoni's 17-year-old record and became the second-quickest Indian wicketkeeper-batter to score a half-century in Tests. The young southpaw achieved the landmark in just 33 balls while Dhoni achieved the feat in 34 balls against Pakistan in 2006.

The record for smashing the fastest half-century by Indian wicketkeeper-batters lies with Pant, who scored a fifty in just 28 balls against Sri Lanka in 2022.