Former England captain Nasser Hussain reckons Jonny Bairstow will be out to prove doubters wrong in Dharamsala in the fifth Test match against India. Bairstow has managed only 170 runs at 21.25 in the four Test matches and hasn’t delivered for the visitors in the ongoing series.
Bairstow will play his 100th Test match for England at Dharamsala and he will be determined to prove his mettle in the landmark Test match.
The Yorkshire batter has come under the cosh for his ordinary performances against India and he will look to make the most of his experience. Bairstow is also 26 runs away from reaching the milestone of 6000 Test runs for England.
“This will be a great occasion for Jonny Bairstow. He’s an emotional cricketer anyway, as we’ve seen over the years, and to reach 100 Test matches after all the ups and downs he has been through will make his family incredibly proud. He polarises opinion at times, but he has done pretty much everything England have asked of him, whether it be as a batter or as a wicketkeeper-batter,” Hussain lauded the wicketkeeper batter in his column for Daily Mail.
“There are generally two types of cricketers. Those that say they don’t read things in the media, concern themselves with external noise or take notice of the pundits. But he is one of the others. Someone that reads everything and loves to prove people wrong, and so – if he can control his emotions – it wouldn’t surprise me if he goes out and silences the doubters again,” Hussain said.
The renowned commentator added that Bairstow needs to score runs in Dharamsala if he wants to be considered for selection for the West Indies series.
“The next Test series against West Indies is four months away, and a lot can happen in the interim, but if he wants to guarantee being around this summer, he needs runs because if everyone’s fit, England will have one too many batters in the mix for top-six selection,” Hussain concluded on the matter.
The fifth and final Test match will be played at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala from March 7.
