If you are a cricket fan, you might have heard the term Bazball in the last few years. It is one viral term when it comes it cricket in recent years as it defines a special style of play created by the England test team and their coach Brendon McCullum. Learn what is Bazball in detail and know why it has become a viral thing.
The former New Zealand captain was known for his attacking cricket in his playing days and now as coach, he is implementing the same tactics in the longest format of the game test cricket. Since joining England as the test team coach in 2022, England has been one of the most exciting teams to watch due to their attacking style of cricket termed Bazball.
The brains behind this new approach are Brendon McCullum who is also known as Baz and captain Ben Stokes. The fans have loved the way England has been playing in Test cricket since then where the players start attacking the opposition from ball one no matter what the result is. Here are some facts about Bazball that you will now see and hear during the much-anticipated IND vs ENG test series.
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What is Bazball, Origin, Meaning, Results
Bazball is a cricketing strategy or tactic in which players play with freedom and attack the opposition once the match kicks off. During the 2022 English cricket season, ESPN Cricinfo UK editor Andrew Miller introduced an informal term to describe the playing style of the England cricket team in Test matches under the coaching of Brendon McCullum and the Captaincy of Ben Stokes.
Bazball origin comes from Brendon McCullum’s name as people call him Baz instead of his full name. Therefore, this new approach used by England’s Test cricket team was named Bazball. The term gradually became very popular among the cricket fraternity as England started playing some amazing cricket.
Bazball revolves around the fundamental concept of swiftly accumulating runs and playing with freedom. McCullum became the England Test coach in May 2022. He quickly brought in his aggressive mindset which was clear in how he batted when he played. The team had only won one out of 17 Tests before he took charge.
In his first assignment with England, he changed the team’s fortune against the reigning World Test Championship title holders. They not only won the series 3-0 but more importantly, they impressively won the games. England has gained significant success with their style of cricket becoming renowned for their aggressive and counter-attacking approach in Test matches.
Bazball Meaning in Collins Dictionary
The term Bazball has been officially added to Collin’s Dictionary which exactly means “a style of test cricket in which the batting side attempts to gain the initiative by playing in a highly aggressive manner”. It is named after Brendon McCullum the former New Zealand skipper who was famous for his aggressive approach in his playing days.
When asked about the viral term Brendon McCullum said he doesn’t know what it is and dislikes the hype around it. His exact words were “I don’t really like that silly term … I don’t have any idea what ‘Bazball’ is. It’s not just all crash and burn”. According to the players, they enjoy the Bazball as it gives them freedom to express themselves on the field.
Most people like the term and what it stands for but when Australian batter Marnus Labuschagne asked about it and was told that the term has been added to Collin’s dictionary, he responded by saying “Garbage”. He further said, “Seriously I don’t know what that is, honestly”.
The Bazball term is once again on the rise as the 5 test match series between India vs England is set to begin today. India is hosting England where England will have a hard time playing the Bazball way on slow and turning pitches. But one thing is for certain under Coach Baz McCullum and Captain Ben Stokes, England will try to impose the Bazball style whether they win or lose.
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Conclusion
Surely, you now know what is Bazball and why is it called Bazball should not be an unknown thing as we have presented all the details about the famous term here. Whether you like the term or not, it has made the longer format of the game exciting to witness whenever England plays it under Baz McCullum.