See ball, hit ball.
It’s the sort of thing that gets purists all riled up and red in the face, but it’s undeniably effective.
The thrilling ‘Bazball’ approach introduced by England this year is the kind of cricket usually reserved for the T20 format, and playing a backyard swing-and-smash style in the Test version of the game can be considered sacrilege.
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Purists have a point, of course, and by taking an aggressive approach, batting teams have the ability to take the game away from their opposition in the first innings, which can obliterate the back-and-forth battle which epitomises the thrill of Test cricket.
The latest generation of stars, however, have grown up watching and playing as much T20 cricket as they have other formats, and it’s inevitable that some of the electric elements of the short version will filter through to other formats. When scoring quickly helps win games, why score slowly?
But there is a flaw to this approach because of one crucial issue: It’s not always easy to score quickly.
An essential element that needs to be taken into account in a five-day cricket match is the conditions, which can change between sessions and completely flip a game on its head.
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So in a new era of the sport, an explosive approach is going to reap rewards, but what will be more crucial is finding a balance and knowing when to take the foot off the pedal.
It’s risky and you can’t score runs if you don’t have wickets.
We probably won’t see the game slowing down, but we’re also not going to see it accelerating out of control to the point that technique becomes irrelevant.
And in a modern world driven by technological advances, which has eliminated much of our patience when we’re being entertained, athletes in other sports are also likely to become increasingly aggressive and less cautious.
Bashing through
If you need to reach the finish line first, just slam it as hard as you can and bash through the course. It’s a tactic that works when it works.
Unfortunately for those who focus more on power and speed than technique, it’s also an approach that will result in a massive implosion when it doesn’t work.
The reality is that teams and players will need to find a way to adjust, mixing aggression with caution, and a clause will need to be added to the mentality of explosive young batters.
See ball, hit ball. But only when it’s safe.
