'England redefining how Test cricket is played': Dinesh Karthik hails Ben Stokes and Co
England defeated New Zealand by 7 wickets in 3rd Test
Indian cricketer Dinesh Karthik showered praise on England after they whitewashed New Zealand 3-0 in the Test series on Monday.
A collective performance from the English players saw the hosts defeat New Zealand by seven wickets in the third Test at Headingley.
Karthik, who is in Ireland at present with the Indian cricket team for the T20I series, took to Twitter to praise Ben Stokes and Co.
"England redefining how TEST cricket is played. Attractive and enjoyable. Great to watch. #BazBall. It's going to be a superb Test match between India and England," Karthik wrote on his official Twitter account.
India and England are set to face off against each other in the rescheduled fifth Test, beginning on July 1. Last year, just ahead of the fifth Test, the Indian camp was struck by covid-19 and as a result, the game was postponed. India are 2-1 up in the series.
While Karthik is a part of the second string Indian team in Ireland, Rohit Sharma and Co are already in England. The Indian team inclusive of the likes of Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Japsrit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and other regular Test members played a four-day practice game against Leicestershire, which ended in a draw on Sunday.
Speaking of the upcoming Test at Edgbaston against India, England captain Ben Stokes said," Different opposition (India), we still have a series to draw. We'll come out with exactly the same mindset."
Earlier in the third Test against New Zealand, England six down for 55 runs in their first innings. However, a brilliant knock by Jonny Bairstow put the hosts back into the game. The 'keeper-batsman scored a 157-ball 162 and put up 241 runs with debutant Jamie Overton for the seventh wicket.
Once again during England's chase, Bairstow played an exceptional knock. He fast-paced the innings with his free flowing runs as England chased down 296 in just 54.2 overs. Bairstow remained unbeaten on 71 off just 44 balls. He reached the 50-run mark in 30 balls – the second-fastest Test fifty by an Englishman.
Former England captain Joe Root was the other unbeaten batsman during England's successful chase on Monday. He scored 86 off 125 balls. During the post-match presentation, Root heaped praise on Bairstow, calling him a "phenomenal player".
"It was like some of the 50-overs stuff we normally play, he (Bairstow) is hitting the ball so well. I'm sure everyone were enjoying it. He's a phenomenal player, he has been for a very long time. It's great to see him showing to the rest of the world how good he is. Hopefully, he can keep moving forward on that trajectory," said Root.
Meanwhile, Player of the Match Jack Leach, who picked up 10 wickets in the Headingley Test, said that Bairstow also deserved the award.
"It's nice to come back after 2019, great memories from that day and here again. It did look dry, Stokesy came to me straight away and said that it's going to spin. Pressure on, but it was good fun. The seamers did a great job and made it easy for me. Pottsy's spell yesterday was unbelievable and he deserved five wickets.
Jonny probably deserves this (Player of the Match award) as well. The way he played, it was an unbelievable knock. As a bowler, you want to take early wickets, that's important, it's good fun," added Leach after England's emphatic victory.