"Bazball, Batti Gull": Ex-India Star's Dig At Ben Stokes And Co. As England Lose Test Series 4-1

Former India opener Virender Sehwag took a dig at the England cricket team and its 'Bazball' approach in Test cricket after Ben Stokes and Co. lost to India in Dharamsala. Ravichandran Ashwin took a five-wicket haul in his landmark 100th Test as the hosts hammered England by an innings and 64 runs in the fifth game on Saturday. With the win, India sealed the series 4-1. England's James Anderson reached 700 Test wickets early in the day to be just the third bowler to achieve the feat, but the visitors were never in the game.

"Bazball, Batti Gull. There needs to be a method to madness. England simply didn't have the game to match and looked clueless particularly after the second Test match. The captain failing miserably only added to their woes and they simply looked like living in an illusion. For this method to succeed, there needs to be a method to madness, which England severely lacked," wrote Sehwag on X, formerly Twitter.

Bazball , Batti Gull.
There needs to be a method to madness. England simply didn't have the game to match and looked clueless particularly after the second test match .
The captain failing miserably only added to their woes and they simply looked like living in an illusion . For... pic.twitter.com/wVtNN1nV8X

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) March 9, 2024

Off-spinner Ashwin returned figures of 5 for 77 to help bowl out England for 195 inside three days at the picturesque Dharamsala stadium, overlooked by snowcapped Himalayan mountains, after India posted a mammoth 477.

He rocked England's top and middle-order after the tourists began their innings 259 runs behind and lost five wickets for 103 runs by lunch.

After the match, Ashwin said he was "very happy" with his performance.

"Win the Test and take wickets, what more can a bowler ask for?" he added.

Joe Root resisted with his 84 and was the last man to go. He was dismissed by Kuldeep Yadav, who took seven wickets in the match and scored 30 crucial runs to be named man of the match, as India celebrated and the players shook hands.

Ashwin finished with nine wickets in the match and his 36th five-wicket haul in a career which began in 2011.

Skipper Rohit Sharma did not take the field due to a "stiff back", with fast bowler deputy Jasprit Bumrah in charge and taking two wickets of his own.

(With AFP Inputs)

Topics mentioned in this article

Cricket India Cricket Team England Cricket Team Ben Stokes Ravichandran Ashwin Virender Sehwag India vs England, 2024 India vs England, 5th Test