On riding a magnificent ton from Jonny Bairstow, apart from a fifty each from Jason Roy and in-form Ben Stokes, England further kept their ICC World Cup 2019 semi-final hopes very much alive after recording a 31-run win over India on Sunday (June) at Edgbaston in Birmingham. Well, very much so Bairstow personally thanked VVS Laxman for his lessons on tackling the spin attack.
With a recent win after back-to-back losses, England moves to the fourth spot on the points table with ten points in eight matches.
The 29-year-old Yorkshire man slammed his maiden World Cup hundred when he scored 109-ball 111. His knock included ten fours and six sixes.
Roy, who returned into England’s playing XI made an impact by scoring 57 off 66 balls. Bairstow alongside Roy gave a resounding start to the Three Lions as they dup posted 160 in just 22.1 overs.
In the end, Stokes played a blinder by scoring 54-ball 79. Also, wicketkeeper-batsman played a cameo of 20 from just eight deliveries
During his sublime innings, Bairstow has played spin according to the merit apart from taking them to cleaners. It could further be described by the figures of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal. Chahal has conceded 88 runs off ten overs, where Kuldeep, gave away 72 in 10 overs.
So much so, Chahal bagged an unwanted record by becoming most expensive as an Indian bowler at the World Cup.
Batting first, England racked up 337 for seven in 50 overs despite Mohammed Shami claiming a five-wicket haul.
Bairstow in awe of VVS Laxman:
While speaking regarding his innings, Bairstow didn’t shy away from admitting that Laxman has guided him to play spin well. It came when Bairstow made his maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) entry in the recently-held edition.
In 10 IPL matches, Bairstow accumulated 445 runs at an average of 55.62. For Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) he notched-up a ton and two half-centuries before returning to the United Kingdom (UK) to join his national team.
“I was reacting to each ball. VVS definitely helped me with his knowledge against spin (while playing for Sunrisers). They bowled well upfront
as they got few edges but we capitalised later,” Bairstow revealed after Birmingham match.
England’s entire focus on Kiwis game:
Also, with all eyes set on England-New Zealand clash on Wednesday at Riverside Ground in Durham. Bairstow conceded that their entire focus would be on Kiwis game rather their upcoming three must-win encounters to lay hands on their maiden World Cup title.
The right-hand top-order batsman believes they could improve on post-New Zealand game
“We have three must-win games in the next two weeks but we need to focus on the next game that we play against New Zealand. We can improve things going forward against New Zealand,” he concluded.
England will face Kane Williamson-led New Zealand on July 3 (Wednesday).