(estimated 5 minute read time) The Ashes are a little over two months away and with England’s Test team looking in fantastic fettle ahead of the series against Australia, we’ve taken a look into the phenomenon that has swept through English Test cricket since the appoint of Brendon ‘Baz’ McCullum as Head Coach and Ben Stokes as Captain – ‘Bazball’. So, what actually is ‘Bazball’, what are it’s origins and how did the name come about? Credit: Sky Sports Cricket - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Yh-7J-wt_o The phrase itself was coined by ESPN Cricinfo editor Andrew Miller when commenting on an episode of the Switch Hit podcast. The term refers to the new style and mindset that was instigated by McCullum as soon as he took over the England Test team reigns in May 2022. Described by many as swashbuckling and explosive, the key component of ‘Bazball’ is the emphasis on a positive decision-making process no matter whether you are batting or in the field. As one of New Zealand’s greatest ever players, McCullum’s decorated career was characterised by a highly attacking and innovative batting style. He was dominant, aggressive, and always forward-thinking in his approach – the hope from England’s Managing Director Rob Key was that he could instil this positivity and energy into a beleaguered England Test squad that had just been battered in The Ashes Down Under and then fell victim to an average West Indies outfit in a humiliating series defeat in the Spring of 2022. This failure in the Caribbean lead to an inquest into the state of English Test cricket - the "red ball reset".  The side had won only one Test match in the seventeen played prior to the hiring of Stokes and McCullum, with previous captain Joe Root stepping down after admitting to feeling “emotionally shattered after leading a struggling side through two difficult years which included multiple tours with testing Covid-enforced restrictions.” With no dramatic change to the players selected, McCullum and Stokes set to work with a busy summer looming. English bowlers suddenly rose to the challenge, taking 20 wickets in six of the seven Test matches, while their batters scored at unprecedented pace. England won six of their seven Tests in the summer of 2022, their second-most in a single season anywhere in the world. Only once (2004) had they won more, and in the time since they had not even matched six wins, let alone bettered it. England achieved marvellous wins against India and New Zealand, winning all four matches in astonishing fashion, chasing a total in the fourth innings each game with those fourth innings chases being 277, 299, 296 and 378 runs! They became the first side in Test history to chase three scores of 250-plus in back-to-back games against New Zealand and became the first England side to ever win four consecutive Test matches batting last. Stokes as captain upon winning the toss began routinely in the summer of 2022 choosing to chase, something which goes against the orthodoxy in Test cricket but is the norm in limited-overs cricket. The results have been undeniably astounding, with not even The Green Room’s very own Darren Gough predicting such a quick turnaround – “I knew Baz and Ben Stokes would form a formidable partnership, but I didn’t think it would happen quite so fast. The cricket the team are playing is exciting, it’s thrilling, and I can’t wait to see them take on the Aussies.” Through his analysis of the England team, respected cricket writer Chris Stocks identified seven key principles that have defined the ‘Bazball’ era:
  1. A less reflective environment
  2. No negative chat
  3. A win-at-all-costs mentality
  4. No fear of failure
  5. Praise – even for the little things
  6. Simplicity of message
  7. Embracing mental freedom and fun
England’s resurgence however wasn’t just limited to the summer either. With a tough series away in Pakistan last December, England once again thrived under McCullum and Stokes. On December 1, 2022 England reached a total of 506-4 at the end of first day’s play in a Test match against Pakistan. These runs came in 75 overs at a run rate of 6.75, an unprecedented rate record in Test cricket. The previous record for the most runs on day one of a match was 494 set by Australia against South Africa 112 years previously in 1910! This innings also included England’s highest ever total in the first session of a Test (174). Zak Crawley scored the most runs in the first over of an innings ever by an England player (114), Crawley and Ben Duckett scored the fastest opening double-century partnership in Test cricket history (181 balls), Harry Brook scored England’s third fastest century of all time (80 balls), and Crawley (86 balls) scored the fastest ever by an England opener and the fifth fastest overall. Many pundits and journalists also point to McCullum’s desire to score quickly and achieve results, his aggressive if sometimes unorthodox fielding changes and his preference for bowling fuller more attacking deliveries as key components of ‘Bazball’. Thinking outside the box such as the use of the infamous ‘Nighthawk’ to replace the traditional ‘Nightwatchman’, whereby instead of a bowler coming into bat to eke out runs and defend at the end of a day’s play, the ‘Nighthawk’ tries to attack the opposition, exerting maximum pressure in what is a critical stage of the game. With results this impressive how can England fans not be excited ahead of The Ashes – they have a team playing cricket that the entire world is taking notice of, they have some of the best talent in the world both with bat and ball and with McCullum and Stokes leading the ‘Bazball’ generation, we can only hope that come the end of the fifth Ashes Test at The Kia Oval in July, the iconic urn is headed back to the ‘home of cricket’. Don’t miss it this summer – The Ashes series against Australia is set to be one for the ages.