(Reuters) – England coach Brendon McCullum said the term “Bazball”, used to describe the team’s new swashbuckling approach to test cricket since his appointment, is “silly,” adding that there is more to England’s style of play than all-out attack.
England, who had been mired in a run of one win in 17 tests, brought in McCullum as coach and named Ben Stokes as their new captain in May and the duo have made an immediate impact.
England have won all four tests since the pair took charge, crushing world test champions New Zealand 3-0 in June before chasing down a record 378 against India this week.
“I don’t have any idea what ‘Bazball’ is,” McCullum told Australia’s SEN Radio on Friday. “It’s not just all crash and burn, if you look at the approach, and that’s why I don’t really like that silly term that people are throwing out there.
“There’s actually quite a bit of thought that goes into how the guys manufacture their performances and when they put pressure on bowlers and which bowlers they put pressure on.”
McCullum also downplayed the significance of the results England have achieved with their new approach, saying tougher challenges await his side.
England host South Africa in a three-test series beginning in August and take on rivals Australia in the 2023 edition of the Ashes.
“I certainly wouldn’t say that we’ve changed the face (of test cricket),” McCullum said. “All we try and do is play a brand of cricket which gives the guys the greatest amount of satisfaction and gives them the best opportunity.
“We’ve also got an obligation to entertain. It’s been a tremendous month, (but) we know that there’s big challenges to come, one of which will be the Aussie boys, but we’ve just got to keep doing what we’re doing.”
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
