South African legend AB De Villiers identified a resemblance between England’s Bazball approach and MS Dhoni’s captaincy in the IPL this year. While Bazball has been criticized for being too cocky, the former South African skipper lauded Ben Stokes’ move and said that things like making a bold declaration are what help the best teams in the world in adapting to and playing tough situations.
.The Ashes always draw everyone’s attention towards its inescapable drama. This time around, a Bazball-powered England is up against the recently crowned WTC champions, Australia. Skipper Ben Stokes’ bold call to declare on Day 1 of the Test and English batters going berserk are some of the talking points floating around.
With Australia emerging victorious in a thrilling last-session match, Ben Stokes and Bazball have come under scrutiny. However, AB de Villiers has defended Stokes for his brave call.
AB Devilliers sees a bit of MSD in Bazball!
Though England’s Day 1 declaration did come back to haunt them later, De Villiers thought of it as a move that the best teams in the world make to adapt and play such situations. He was impressed by the approach and took to Twitter to praise Ben and Co.
I never looked at the Birmingham weather leading up to this Test match. The way England played now makes sense. Call it what you want, some say Bazz Ball, I just think it’s smart Cricket. The best teams are prepared to adapt and play situations in a way that’ll ultimately put…— AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) June 20, 2023
AB De Villiers compared Ben Stokes’ captaincy with that of MS Dhoni in IPL 2023. ABD tweeted,“The only way to make it impactful is to have a complete buy in from every individual, no ego’s, no stats driven players, just a full on buy in to be the best team in the world. That’s how I see the Eng team play atm. Also saw that with MSD and co. in the IPL.“
Bazball being a true entertainer has gathered various critical and creative reactions from people during this Ashes Test, take a look.
I see so many fans going after Bazzball, just mocking it. Get a grip, bazball made this Test special. You can celebrate Australia’s win without downplaying Bazball. That was one helluva effort from England & Stokes. #ENGvAUS #Ashes— Vishesh Roy (@vroy38) June 20, 2023
Ben Stokes just saved the ECB 120 quid on a new dukes that was due in two overs. Bazball, changing cricket, but also saving money.— Jarrod Kimber (@ajarrodkimber) June 16, 2023
This Bazball phenomenon is not just about gung-ho cricket but about expecting the unexpected & this move to stick with Joe Root & not take the second new-ball sums it up. Even Broad was convinced he would be charging in for the 81st over before Ben Stokes changed his mind #Ashes— Bharat Sundaresan (@beastieboy07) June 20, 2023
Now, after the move backfiring, it will be interesting to see if Ben Stokes and Co. continue with the approach or give it a break.
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