Justin Langer believes Pat Cummins has shown other teams in the world what they need to overcome the chaos of Bazball. The former Australia opener and head coach’s comments came after Cummins led Australia to a memorable 2-wicket win over England in the first Ashes Test.
The visitors remained on the backfoot for most part of the game but eventually crossed the finishing line with their skipper leading from the very front. Set a target of 281 runs in the second innings, Australia made a poor start with the bat and were looking destined to lose the game after losing 8 wickets for 227 runs.
However, Cummins and Nathan Lyon added an unbeaten 55 runs for the ninth wicket to break England’s heart. The Australia skipper remained unbeaten on 44 while Lyon scored 16 as the visitors registered one of their best Test wins of all time.
Justin Langer on Bazball:
Writing for The Telegraph, Justin Langer sent out a message to Team India and other Test teams of the world on how to deal with the Bazball. Last year, India were blown away by England as they failed to defend 378 runs in the fourth innings. England chased down the total by losing just 3 wickets.
Australia were up against England in similar batting-friendly conditions but eventually managed to win the game. And Langer believes the reason behind it is ‘ice in the veins’
“Questions have been raised before, and indeed during this Test match, on what the antidote to Bazball might be,” Langer wrote. “The Australian captain just showed the world; it is ice in the veins.
“Australia reminded us here that they are the No 1 Test team in the world for a reason. They trust their method. As they should. It works and they win consistently.
“For Cummins to keep his composure after a difficult first day, first ball even, showed the class of the man, especially in making his highest score for five years,” he added.
Former England skipper Nasser Hussain also heaped praise on Cummins for his captaincy. The former cricketer-turned-commentator pointed out how Cummins never lost his calmness under pressure and eventually led his team to the win.
“To be able to hang in there when England played the way they did, Joe Root scooping him and him having to set fields to counteract it, was a mark of him as both a cricketer and character,” Hussain wrote in the Daily Mail.
“The criticism he faced for adopting defensive fields, the ability to soak all of that up, and then on the fifth evening come out with 72 runs needed and bat in such a clinical manner was exceptional,” he added.