Graeme Swann, the former England spinner said that Jonny Bairstow looks like a shadow of the player who was smashing it against New Zealand.

England batter Jonny Bairstow had been in fine form against New Zealand last month as he registered back-to-back centuries at Trent Bridge and Headingley. He was playing an attacking brand of cricket and everyone expected the same to be the case against India in the ongoing rescheduled fifth Test at Edgbaston.

Graeme Swann: Jonny Bairstow Looks Like A Shadow Of Himself As He Wasn’t Facing Bowling Of Indian’s Best Standard

However, this has not been the case so far, as Jonny Bairstow has been bogged down by the quality of the Indian attack. The right-handed batter has played 47 balls so far, scoring just 12. Former England spinner Graeme Swann said that Jonny Bairstow is looking like a shadow of the player who was smashing it last week as he was not facing bowling of this standard.

“Jonny Bairstow looks a shadow of the player who was smashing it against New Zealand last week. He wasn’t facing bowling of this standard,” said Graeme Swann while doing commentary on Day 2 of the ongoing Test.

Jonny Bairstow is arguably in the form of his life following an exceptional home series against New Zealand, where he tallied 394 runs at an astonishing strike rate of 120.12. Jonny Bairstow is the world’s leading scorer in Test cricket this year with 786 runs – including four hundred – at an average of 65.50 in 2022, and scored 394 runs against New Zealand, including 77 and 95-ball centuries at Trent Bridge and Headingley respectively.

His strike rate against New Zealand (120.12) was the second-highest in Test history by a batter scoring more than 300 runs in a series.

Ravindra Jadeja And Rishabh Pant’s Centuries Put India In A Commanding Position

Left-handed batter Ravindra Jadeja was at his best in the first innings of the ongoing Edgbaston Test as he played a 104-run knock to help India post 416 runs on the board. India was struggling at 98/5 and it was then that Ravindra Jadeja along with Rishabh Pant put on 222 runs for the sixth wicket. Rishabh Pant scored 146.

At stumps on Day 2, England’s score read 84/5 and they are still trailing by 332 runs with Jonny Bairstow (12*) and Ben Stokes (0*) at the crease. Stand-in skipper Jasprit Bumrah took three wickets while Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami took one each. Ravindra Jadeja’s 3rd Test hundred coupled with Jasprit Bumrah’s pyrotechnics with bat and a three-wicket haul with the ball put India in the ascendancy on the second day.

Brief scores: At Stump’s: Day 2: 

India 1st innings: 416 all out in 84.5 overs (Rishabh Pant 146, Ravindra Jadeja 104; James Anderson 5/60)

England 1st innings: 84/5 in 27 overs (Joe Root 31; Jasprit Bumrah 3/35).