'How long will you stick with it if...' - Former India opener criticises England's 'bazball' approach after trailing 2-0 in Ashes 2023 

2nd Ashes 2023 (Source: Twitter)

The 2023 Ashes kicked off with much hype about England's 'bazball' approach, but former India cricketer Akash Chopra believes that Australia's conventional approach has been more successful in the series so far. With England trailing 2-0 in the five-match series, Chopra questions whether Ben Stokes and Co. will continue their aggressive style in the remaining matches.

The Pat Cummins-led team won the first match at Edgbaston, Birmingham by two wickets. The English skipper's bold decision to declare the first innings on Day 1 with two wickets to spare is understood to be part of their new Test approach. Australia extended their lead at Lord's by a 43-run win, despite Stokes exhibiting the pinnacle of 'bazball' by hitting 155 off 214 balls.

Chopra, who often analyses matches on his YouTube channel, was unsure if England would continue with the same approach. "What about Bazball now? England are 2-0 down. Will they review their game plan? Where is Bazball going? I feel this team's bowling is slightly ordinary. It is not up to the level of cricket that they want to play," he said.

It is a battle between philosophies - Chopra

The former Indian opener pointed out that the ongoing series is a battle between two different brands of cricket. He added that Usman Khawaja, the highest run-getter so far (300 runs at an average of 75.00 and a strike rate of 38.70), is the main man of Australia's "methodical cricket".

"It is a battle between philosophies. There is an entertaining brand of cricket that England want to play and then there is methodical cricket that Australia want to play. Usman Khawaja is probably the flag bearer of that, he has played the most deliveries but has the least strike rate. It is not competitive but it is extremely effective. That's what he is trying to do."

Chopra went on to say that England is entertaining everyone and pushing everyone to watch them play, but Australia's traditional approach, which has been followed for the past 150 years, is the most effective way of doing it.

"They have said as well that Test cricket will die if they don't play like this. It is their thinking. It is very noble thinking but for how long will you stick with it if the results don't go in your favor, that's something that we shall find out," the 45-year-old concluded.