May 6, 2024

The 'Bazball' was revealed as India registered their biggest ever Test win over a hapless England

Former captain Michael Vaughan has condemned England's performance in the third Test against India, declaring that the visitors' aggressive approach had been “exposed” after they suffered a 434-run defeat in Rajkot.

Chasing an improbable 557 to win the third Test, Ben Stokes' side capitulated in the fourth innings and were bowled out for just 122, slumping to their heaviest defeat in terms of runs since 1934.

A series of poor shots gifted victory to the hosts late in the fourth day after Yashavi Jaiswal hit his second double hundred of the series that saw the hosts declare 430 to set a world record chase for England.

England's gritty 'buzzball' approach under captain Stokes and head coach Brendan McCullum saw them secure a dramatic win in the first Test of the series, but they have now come under heavy criticism, as the defeat in Rajkot means they now trail 2-1 going into the fifth match. series.

Speaking to the BBC, Vaughan said: “I'm afraid Buzzball will be exposed this week.” Special match test.

“It's great when it works. The first Test was a pitch that did all kinds of stuff, so I put Bazball on that pitch but not the last two Tests where the pitches were perfectly fine to just play with positive intentions but more sensibly. This is a wake-up call which definitely sends a message [that] “You can't play just one way against quality teams.”

See also  Notable in Aspen: Keldy Makes a Fat Booty - Alpine Skiing

Meanwhile, Stokes defended his side's game plan and said they would not let outside voices deter them from their approach. “We wanted to push the game as far as we could,” he said after the defeat. “Sometimes game plans don't work out, and that's sport sometimes.”

Joe Root reacts after giving a pound to Ravindra Jadeja

(Getty)

“Everyone has a perception and an opinion [of our style]. People in the locker room have opinions that really matter to us. Sometimes things don't go the way we want them to. [We are] 2-1 down and two games remaining. We have a great chance at 3-2. We put this game behind us and know we have to win the next two games to win the series.

England have historically struggled when traveling to India, losing their last series 7-1, and former England captain Sir Alastair Cook believes the team is still beating pre-series expectations despite their collapse in the third Test.

“Despite the odds in this series, I think England played super well with their team and competed very well,” he told TNT Sports.

“Obviously in the last two days here, India have shown strength and some of the things that were worrying England before the series – their spinners have not been effective and are struggling with the strength of this Indian batting line-up. But in a week's time, if England win the toss and bat on a flat pitch and perform well Things can change very quickly.

Both sides now have a few days off before the fourth Test in Ranchi that begins on Friday.

See also  FIFA turns around - World Cup 2026 with groups of 4 and 104 (!) Games - Sports