Rajkot: England batter Ollie Pope has revealed that the England players are not allowed the term Bazball for the philosophy they adopt to approach Test cricket.
India are up against England in a five-match Test series with the series levelled at 1-1. The third Test of the series will be played on Wednesday and both teams will have a chance to take a lead in the series over their opponents. Ollie Pope shined with the bat in the first Test for the visitors as he played a knock of 196 runs in the second innings which paved way for their victory.
The English outfit has been praised by many for their attacking template to play Test cricket which is also known as Bazball amongst the cricket fraternity. However, Pope has revealed that English players are prohibited from using the term Bazball.
“Everyone bats differently in this team. We’re not allowed to say Bazball, but the start that we’re making isn’t always about attacking. A lot of the time it’s about absorbing pressure when we need to absorb pressure,”
The third Test of the series will be also the 100th red-ball fixture for England all-rounder Ben Stokes and Pope lauded him for his ability to deliver under pressure situations.
“He has probably changed the game in a lot of respects, he has just got a way of bringing out the very best of him when the team needs it. Even in the Ashes at Lord’s (155 in the second innings) , which I remember thinking about ‘how does he obviously take it to a new level when all the pressure is on him’,” Pope told the media on Tuesday.
Pope also gave credit for his success to Ben Stokes saying the captain asked him to bat at No.3 position which has helped him a lot to excel in red-ball cricket.
“I was there in the eleven when he took (on) the captaincy role. He made it pretty clear that I was the man for the No. 3 job and that just gave me a lot of confidence. His man management was excellent. He seemed like he’s got as much time for everyone in the squad whether that be the physios or the doctors, as he does for his eleven on the pitch as well,” the England batter said.
The third Test of the series will be played at Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot from Thursday.
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