Last Updated on 3 years by Charbel Coorey
Cricket News: Why has Jonny Bairstow been so good in Tests in 2022? | A look at why Jonny Bairstow has been great in Tests in 2022
2022 has been a superb year for Jonny Bairstow, culminating in a euphoric rise in Test cricket. Since England’s white-ball transformation in 2015, Bairstow’s Test game suffered at times as he became one of the centrepoints of England’s brilliant ODI and T20I game.
Although he showed glimpses of what he is capable of in Test cricket, he failed to cement himself as a regular member, due to a struggle to adjust across formats. In particular, Bairstow would find himself in big trouble against deliveries coming back into him, failing to cover the line effectively enough to counter for movement.
However, this year, no one can dare question Bairstow’s ability as a Test cricketer. Watching the Yorkshireman in whites in 2022, it seems like he is batting in autopilot mode, with no mood to stop. Be it any opposition, any ground, or any given condition, Bairstow has bailed England out of challenging situations on more than one occasion.
Jonny Bairstow’s struggle before 2022:
Jonny Bairstow’s Test career has been topsy-turvy. It was long back in 2016 when the Yorkshire-based cricketer enjoyed a stellar run with the bat in Test cricket.
After it took him 22 Tests and three-and-a-half years to register his first century, he went on to establish himself as a leading red-ball keeper-batter in 2016. In 17 Tests that year, he scored over 1400 runs, averaging an astonishing 58.80 with three centuries.
In June 2017, he took on the role of an ODI opener, and then Bairstow’s rise as one of the best white-ball batters coincided with a downturn in his returns in the red-ball format. From 2017 to 2019, Bairstow averaged 27.98 in Test cricket from 32 games and lost his place in the side.
He didn’t play a single Test in 2020 but earned a shock recall for the Test tour of Sri Lanka in 2021. In that year, England played a lot of cricket in the subcontinent; first against Sri Lanka and then against India. Bairstow couldn’t make most of his Test recall as he ended another disappointing year with an average of 24.44.
The rise of Jonny Bairstow in 2022
However, the new year saw the rebirth of Bairstow, the Test batter. In the first Test of the year, he scored a fighting hundred (113) against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) which was his first hundred since 2018. What was most impressive is that he came in at 36/4 with England having not scored a single run in over ten overs against a rampant Aussie attack.
That innings ignited some belief. In the next away tour to West Indies, he scored another century at Antigua and averaged 45.20 in six innings, further solidifying his place for the English summer.
However, the disappointing 1-0 series defeat to struggling West Indies saw the ECB overhaul the Test team and management. Former swashbuckling New Zealand keeper-batsmen Brendon McCullum was appointed as the new head coach of the side while Ben Stokes took over as captain.
This new leadership and management group seems to have awakened the beast mode of Jonny Bairstow. The 32-year-old dominated the current World Test Champions – New Zealand in the three-match Test series.
In that series, Bairstow went on to score 394 in six innings; he batted at an average of 78.80 and an unbelievable strike rate of 120.12. He produced two of the all-time classic counter-attacking Test innings to help his team chase totals in the last two Tests of the series in Trent Bridge and Headingley.
Bairstow continued to excel in the longest version of the game as he scored twin tons to help his team beat India at Birmingham in the all-important rescheduled fifth Test match. In Test cricket so far this year, Bairstow has managed to score 994 runs at an average of 76.46 and a healthy strike rate of 76.24 including six hundreds and one fifty which makes him the highest run-getter to date.
What has changed for Jonny Bairstow? Is it the technique or Bazball effect?
Well, nothing has really changed for Bairstow as far as technique is concerned. He’s always been a solid batter who has the ability to score equally well square on both sides and straight down the ground.
The main weakness, exposed by Jasprit Bumrah in 2021, was his struggle against the incoming delivery. Earlier, he was tentative to play the ball off his stumps and often left huge a gap between bat and pad.
Now, Bairstow is far more proactive when the bowlers are trying to attack his stumps. His application and focus on putting the pressure back on the bowler with good cricketing shots has reaped significant rewards thus far, with New Zealand and India, both excellent bowling attacks, copping the full extent of Bairstow’s strokeplay.
Next up is South Africa, and that promises to be a superb battle against the Proteas’ potent pace attack. One thing is for sure – Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes will encourage Bairstow to go about his game the way he has this year. Should it come off, England will be in a strong position to win their third consecutive Test series, a huge turnaround from the previous period where they won just one of 17 Tests pre-Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes.
