Michael Vaughan said that Jonny Bairstow needs to pull up his socks to retain his place in the England Test team. Bairstow returned to action last year after recovering from a foot injury, but is yet to be at his very best.
In 10 Tests since his return, Bairstow has scored only 492 runs at an average of 30.75 with a top score of 99 during the Ashes in 2023.
Bairstow has had a poor outing in the 5-match series against India. In 4 games, the veteran has scored only 170 runs at an average of 21.25 with the highest score of 38.
Bairstow is now set to play his 100th Test when England face India in the 5th Test at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala. However, Vaughan said that Bairstow may not get a chance to play his 101st Test if he doesn’t get amongst the runs.
“Jonny Bairstow plays his 100th Test in Dharamsala, and I am delighted about that. It’s a great triumph of resilience and, even in terms of sentiment, I believe that if you get to 99 caps you deserve the moment of your 100th.
“However, you can’t escape that he could miss out on his 101st. He hasn’t played well enough across the 10 Tests he’s been back in the side, especially in India,” Vaughan wrote in his column for The Telegraph.
Ben Foakes’ batting still doesn’t England
Vaughan said that Ben Foakes has struggled to get accustomed to England’s style of batting in Test cricket.
“I also look at the ‘keeper, Ben Foakes. He has kept magnificently in India, but I get the sense that he’s not in the inner circle with this setup and that his batting still doesn’t suit them,” he said.
“The last Test was a good example: he is great in partnership with a batsman, but struggles kicking on with the tail. Once again, his batting might not be enough however good his keeping is,” Vaughan added.
Foakes has mostly been circumspect in the series, having scored 173 runs at a strike-rate of 37.44 with a top score of 47.
Foakes and Bairstow will be looking to perform well when England try to finish their campaign in India on a positive note.
