Will Bazball work in India? England captain Ben Stokes comes up with a realistic answer

England defeated arch-rivals Australia by 49 runs in the fifth Test at The Oval and ensured that the Three Lions remain undefeated in an Ashes series at home since 2011.

SportsTak

• Tue • 01 Aug 2023

England defeated arch-rivals Australia by 49 runs in the fifth Test at The Oval and ensured that the Three Lions remain undefeated in an Ashes series at home since 2011. The Ashes 2023 ended 2-2, and according to England captain Ben Stokes and his Australia counterpart Pat Cummins, the scoreline perfectly sums up how competitive the series was. After England lost the opening two Tests of the series, their 'Bazball' approach was under immense scrutiny. As it turned out, England coach Brendon McCullum's strategies worked out just fine.

Over the last couple of years, Stokes and other England players have been often quizzed on the likelihood of their 'Bazball' approach's success against different opposition. So far, the Three Lions fared exceedingly well be it in the recently-concluded series against Australia, or away series against Pakistan or even against New Zealand and South Africa.

After the conclusion of the Ashes 2023, Stokes was quizzed about whether 'Bazball' will pay dividends in India as England are slated to play a five-match Test series against the subcontinent giants early next year. Stokes came up with a realistic reply and underlined the number of times he and his players were questioned.

"I remember when we beat New Zealand 3-0, (the chatter) was we couldn't do it against South Africa, (we) couldn't do it against Pakistan, (we) couldn't do it against Australia. So who knows if we can do it against India, only time will tell," Stokes said.

England will face India in a five-Test series which will be a part of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 cycle. The Test series will begin on January 25 and will end in the second week of March.

England tour of India 2024

January 25 to January 29 (Thursday to Monday) - India vs England 1st Test, Hyderabad
February 2 to February 6 (Friday to Tuesday) - India vs England 2nd Test, Vizag
February 15 to February 19 (Thursday to Monday) - India vs England 3rd Test, Rajkot
February 23 to February 27 (Friday to Tuesday) - India vs England 4th Test, Ranchi
5th Test date is yet to be revealed