Justin Langer welcomes England’s BazBall approach, says its “injecting life into Tests”

The English Test side, heralded under new coach Brendon McCullum, recently pulled off four sensational run-chases in succession.

For starters, McCullum’s Test era as a coach began with England steamrolling the visiting New Zealanders 3-0 at home. 

With contributions from Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow and captain Ben Stokes in various stages of the series, the hosts successfully chased down daunting targets of 277, 299 and 296, all while maintaining a run-rate of more than five-an-over.

Later, the Ben Stokes-led side upped their game further and recorded their highest successful Test run-chase, securing 378 against India in the rescheduled fifth Test.

England’s aggressive approach in intimidating run-chases under new coach has now been termed as ‘BazBall’ within the cricketing fraternity. Notably, the name itself is a nod to coach McCullum, who was known for his slam-bang batting at the top of the order during his New Zealand playing days.

Justin Langer praises England’s attacking approach

Former Australian coach Justin Langer has complimented the English players for their newfound aggression in Test run-chases. The former opening batter and Test maverick believes the England team is “injecting life into Test cricket” with their new approach.

While speaking with SEN WA’s Gilly and Goss, Langer said, “It’s awesome (England’s run) and that’s why we love Test cricket so much. The way England are playing is brilliant. It’s great to watch. Anything to keep injecting life into Test cricket.”

“Test cricket is magic, it’s one of the great things about playing the game. Anything we can do to keep propping up the game of Test cricket can only be a good thing,” he added.