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[Saba Sports News] Since its introduction in 2022, the term “Bazball,” inspired by England’s head coach Brendon McCullum’s nickname ‘Baz’, has symbolized a new, aggressive approach to Test cricket. This strategy focuses on playing assertively in both batting and fielding, and it has paid off for England, especially on their home ground. As England, led by Ben Stokes, prepares for their challenging five-match Test series in India, Indian cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar suggests that India’s response lies in what he calls ‘Viratball’, a nod to Virat Kohli’s style.
The upcoming series, starting January 25 in Hyderabad, is crucial for India in the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, where they currently hold the second position. This series marks the first red-ball clash between India and England since their drawn series in 2022. Previously, India had achieved a remarkable 2-1 lead in 2021.
Virat Kohli, known for his impressive record against England, scoring 1991 runs in 28 matches, will be a key player in this series. He comes into the match following a strong performance against South Africa.
Gavaskar, speaking to Star Sports, highlighted Kohli’s conversion rate and form, suggesting that ‘Viratball’ could effectively counter England’s Bazball strategy. He praised Kohli’s balance of hundreds and fifties, indicating his efficient conversion rate in Test cricket.
“Yeah, conversion means having more hundreds than fifties. With Kohli, he has as a similar amount of hundreds and fifties, that means he has a good conversion rate. The way he’s been batting, his movement looks good. With the form that he’s in, we have Viratball to counter Bazball,” said Gavaskar.
Gavaskar also expressed interest in seeing how England’s new approach to Test cricket will fare against India’s spin duo, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, who collectively have over 500 wickets in 49 matches. He noted England’s aggressive batting style and its potential impact when facing India’s spinners.
“England have adopted a new approach in Test cricket in the last 1-2 years. It’s an aggressive approach where batters look to attack. They just want to play attacking cricket no matter the situation. It’ll be interesting to see if this approach works against the spinners of India,” he added.