“One Bad Shot Here, And You Get Everyone On Your Back” – Shan Masood Warns England That Their Bazball Approach Will Be Risky In Test Series

After losing the Ashes and the West Indies series last year, the English team was in shambles, having won only one of their last 17 Test matches. England’s home Test summer started with a new captain and coach. England only lost one test out of seven during their home season, and they scored at an astounding rate of 4.44, which was 60% quicker than their overall rate of 2.76.

English all-rounder Ben Stokes was named captain, while Brendon McCullum took over as red-ball coach. Since then, England has adopted a more positive and aggressive style of play known as “Bazball,” which has changed their fortunes. They whitewashed the World Test Championship champions, defeated India to tie the series at 2-2, and defeated South Africa in a three-match series.

I Think Anyone Can, But It’s Risky – Shan Masood

Shan Masood, a Pakistan batsman, has raised doubts over England’s ‘Bazball’ approach in the subcontinent. The 33-year-old believes that if they continue with it in Pakistan, things will go horribly wrong very quickly. However, he backed long-term success with his approach to Test matches.

“I think anyone can, but it’s risky. As a batsman, one bad shot here, and you get everyone on your back. They’ve decided this is the way they want to play it. They decided that with their white ball cricket in 2015 too. People initially laughed it off when in white ball cricket they talked about scoring 400, but they did that and ended up winning that World Cup three years ago,” Shan Masood said.

I Wouldn’t Be Surprised If They Start Winning World Championships – Shan Masood

Shan Masood stated that England’s gameplay has made Test cricket more entertaining for viewers to watch. The left-hander said that he wouldn’t be surprised if they win world championships if they continue to play in this style.

“Now it’s come to Test cricket, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they start winning World Championships with this style of play because they found their own thing; they’ve seen a gap that maybe exists in cricket and been successful. They’ve made it more entertaining and put the spark back in it,” he added.

England will play a three-match Test series against Pakistan, starting at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi, on December 1, with the remaining two matches to be played in Multan and Karachi. For the first time in 17 years, England will play a Test match on Pakistan soil. They last toured Pakistan in 2005, when they were defeated 2-0.

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