Ah, well, the Adelaide Test isn’t over yet and the critics
are out already as former England captain, Bob Willis, questioned the team’s
strategy when naming the starting XI. Willis was particularly displeased at how
low Jonny Bairstow was batting in the order.
Willis said to Optus
Sport’s Stumps, “He [Bairstow] has got to bat five.”
“England have got this batting order all wrong, Bairstow is
far too low.
"Moeen Ali at six and Malan at seven. Batting at number
seven, Bairstow is wasted down there.
"You need your best players up the order and for
England that's Jonny Bairstow."
Indeed, the evaluation of Bairstow by Willis is not far from
point as the wicketkeeper-batsman ranks as the third best for the Three Lions
since the 2015 Ashes. With 2185 runs at an average of 45.52, Bairstow is only
bettered by Alaistair Cook’s 2345 runs at an average of 44.24 and Joe Root’s
2665 at an average of 51.25.
However, he has been batting at number 7 for the majority of
his time during his England career, with 33 innings at number 7 when compared
to 25 at 6 and 19 at 5. However, it should be added that his average drops down
to 30.15 when he bats at 5, so it is not entirely a matter of amusement to see him bat at number 7.
Whether or not England promote him up the order will be
revealed by the sands of time, but what should be of certainty is that if
England are to win the Adelaide Ashes Test, Bairstow will have to play a big
role – regardless of where he bats.
