AUS vs ENG: No Recall For Ben Foakes As Struggling Jonny Bairstow Set To Be Backed By England

England are likely to persist with Jonny Bairstow in their playing XI for the last two Ashes Tests despite his poor performance with both bat and wicketkeeping gloves.

The wicketkeeper-batsman has looked like a pale shadow of his usual self in the ongoing series and is yet to make a telling contribution with either bat or gloves. All eyes were on him during the third Test following his contentious departure in the second game.

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While England were hoping for Bairstow to respond to his controversial dismissal with a solid performance, he failed once again. With the bat, he could manage only 12 and 5 and struggled behind the stumps once again. In the first innings, he dropped both Steve Smith and Travis Head and it cost England 48 runs. Fortunately, the hosts went on to win the game by three wickets.

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England to back Jonny Bairstow:

With Jonny Bairstow struggling, there have been calls from several quarters to replace him with Ben Foakes. Foakes is widely regarded as one of the best wicketkeepers in the world but failed to make it to the Ashes squad due to Bairstow’s better record as a batsman. Playing both of them is highly unlikely and thus England have reportedly decided to keep backing Bairstow.

According to a report by The Telegraph, the England selectors will meet later this week to decide the playing XI for the fourth Ashes Test and Bairstow is likely to be named in the team. Earlier, veteran England pacer James Anderson threw his support behind Bairstow while writing in his column for The Telegraph, stating that the players will offer their support and comfort to the under-performing wicketkeeper.

“We will help him as much as we can to keep his spirits up because we know what a devastating player he can be. Most players need that support. Every now and then you need an arm around you and a chat,” Anderson wrote.

“It is important to talk to everyone to make sure they are alright and in the right place. Jonny is no different. He has been through so many things in his life that people think he can just deal with it. But we know as players it is our job to make sure we are there for him and support him any way we can, similarly with anyone who is not on top of their game,” he added.

Meanwhile, the fourth Ashes Test is scheduled to be played from July 19 in Manchester. Australia are currently leading the series 2-1.

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