They say when it rains, it pours!
Well Ben Stokes would certainly agree to this as he looked helplessly at the Manchester skies on the fifth day of the fourth test with the hope the Rain Gods would relent their drops of misery on England.
But alas they weren’t kind to the New Zealand born English stalwart much like life is to a person who has lost his will to live.
This after Bazball had finally began to reap the benefits as Stokes and his chargers made a miraculous comeback winning the third test after being 2-0 down in the mother of all series.
Yes, England were coming into their own with their ultra-aggressive approach having won bravely at Headingly beating Australia by 3 wickets and were well on their way to squaring the series at Old Trafford before rain had other plans.
They had reduced Australia to 214 for 5 in the fourth test who stared at a deficit of 61 runs in their second innings of The Ashes test. This after the Poms posted a mammoth 592 courtesy the heroic efforts of Zak Crawley and Johnny Bairstow.
Well weather had other plans in store as the test in questionspiralled to ending in an unfortunate draw resulting in the Aussies retaining the Ashes.
England now can only square the series at 2-2 if they win at Oval. This after, the Kangaroos won the last instalment of this historical series in their own backyard 4-0 in the summer of 2021-22.
With the context being now established, lets delve into the topic of this article – With the Ashes sealed by Australia, can Bazball become even more relentless?
Perhaps the answer is an astounding yes and here’s why:
When a team is unburdened with the ultimate fear of losing,they always try and maximize their potential.
For England that’s making Bazball even more relentless. The Poms don’t have the pressure to win The Ashes but just a test which could spur them to even greater heights in their execution of squaring the series at 2apiece.
Having finally got their combination right with the four quicks and the spinning all-rounder in Moen Ali which complements their already solid looking batting, England will undoubtedly come out all guns blazing in London.
Bazball will undeniably be at its fearsome best making the fifth test as enthralling as any between these powerhouses in recent memory.
So make sure you are ready to watch this edge of the seat affair. I know I would!
(Source of image- Cricket One app)
