Jonny Bairstow Under Pressure Ahead of Fourth Ashes Test as Sir Geoffrey Boycott Urges Ben Stokes to Make ‘Brave’ Decision
England wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow has endured a difficult Ashes series and now England legend Sir Geoffrey Boycott has urged Ben Stokes to make a ‘brave’ decision and axe him ahead of next week’s fourth Ashes Test.
Bairstow was one of the poster boys for the new ‘Bazball’ era last year with a series of outstanding displays but he was cut down in his prime following a horrific leg break, sustained while playing golf. That setback prevented Bairstow from being part of England’s victorious World T20 campaign but he was parachuted straight back in to the Test team at the first available opportunity in place of Ben Foakes.
The 33-year-old has struggled to recapture his best form, however, with his performances behind the stumps having cost his side dear in the defeats at Lord’s and Edgbaston earlier in the series. Bairstow, one half century aside, has fared little better with the bat and the controversial run out incident during the second innings at Lord’s appears still to be weighing heavily on his mind.
Boycott Believes Bairstow Must Be Taken Out of Firing Line
And Boycott, reluctantly, believes his fellow Yorkshireman must be taken out of the firing line as England head to Old Trafford looking to square the series at 2-2. In his column for the Daily Telegraph, he wrote: ‘Some people say never change a winning team. I disagree. My experience of playing at the highest level for so long and my common sense tells me that Jonny Bairstow is not fit. Last year he suffered an horrific injury with a broken leg in two places and damaged ligaments. He isn’t moving 100 per cent right and is short of competitive batting and wicketkeeping. He has been selected on last summer’s marvellous match-winning batting, but at this moment in time is a shadow of his best.
Boycott went on to say that England took a ‘calculated gamble’ by selecting Bairstow and it hasn’t worked. He added that Bairstow is ‘dropping things and not moving properly’ and that someone needs to be brave for him and take him out of the limelight.
Boycott concluded by saying that when Bairstow is at his best he is a better plus for England than Ben Foakes but at the moment he is not safe with his keeping and is rusty. He added that it needs some courage now from Stokes to leave Jonny out as England have to win at Old Trafford and not focus on the Oval and maybe creating history.
Conclusion
It remains to be seen whether Stokes will take Boycott’s advice and drop Bairstow for the fourth Ashes Test. However, one thing is certain – if England are to have any chance of winning the series then they will need to be at their very best and that means getting the selection right.
Bairstow has been a great servant for England over the years but it seems his time may be up for now as Stokes looks to make a brave decision ahead of the fourth Test.