How England backed itself into Bazball corner, Ben Stokes, Joe Root

England will double down on its “Bazball” approach for the Ashes as Australian legend Allan Border said he has no doubt the Ben Stokes’ led team will adopt a typically aggressive style for the highly anticipated series this summer.

With star batter Harry Brook declaring England is in great shape for the tour of Australia, coach Brendon McCullum said that moving too far away from the contentious manner with which they have played during his reign could leave them “vulnerable”.

Speaking after England fell narrowly short of clinching a gripping series against India 3-1, with the tourists producing a heroic performance at The Oval to square the five Test encounter, McCullum said he still believed attack gave the nation its best chance.

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“I think if we stay true to what we believe in, backing it, and almost double down on the philosophy, it gives us our greatest opportunity,” McCullum told Sky Sports.

“I think that is what we are able to do at Lord’s. I think with the bat in hand, we were brave when we needed to be. (And) there are many different (aspects) throughout the series where we grew as a team.

“It is hard to say that when you have lost the last Test but throughout I thought the changing room was growing and was understanding that when we play our style, it gives us our greatest chance. It doesn’t guarantee anything, but it gives us our greatest chance.”

Similarly to former Australian skipper Steve Smith, who noted the arch rivals had tempered with its approach against India and looked to be “actually trying to win” matches, Border believes England demonstrated they have become better at adapting to situations in games.

The ex-Aussie captain said that could lead to a lively summer as England seek to win an Ashes series down under for the first time in 15 years after being thrashed in its three most recent tours of Australia.

“I personally quite like (Bazball). I like the attitude that it brings to Test cricket. There’s always something happening with England,” Border told Fox Sports News.

“Yeah, they play their shots. They go for it. It’s always exciting to watch. So from that point of view, it’s a good thing for Test cricket. There’s plenty of results (and) the scoring rate is high.

“But I suppose, from my point of view of watching on, they’ve … pulled it back a little bit from where they were a couple years ago. A few years ago it just got ridiculous. They were trying to slog everything, playing reverse sweeps against fast bowlers. But I think they’ve turned now.

“They have some very, very good players. Root is getting better with age (and) they have a very, very strong batting line-up, so they might have a shot. I think in Australian … conditions, maybe our faster bowlers might have something to say about that, but I think it’s all set up for a really cracking series in Australia.”

Brook, who was England’s player of the series in the thrilling 2-all draw against India, lamented a loose shot that led to his dismissal in their failed run chase at The Oval.

But he believes this England squad has the talent and temperament to break through in the Ashes despite failing to beat either Australia or India on home soil under McCullum.

“I think we are in a great place,” he told the BBC.

“We have some phenomenal players (and) some character in the dressing room as well. We have an awesome team and we are all really looking forward to the Ashes.”

IS ‘BAZBALL’ THE RIGHT APPROACH?

Questions can clearly be raised about the effectiveness of the “Bazball” approach.

England had a higher run rate than India in every innings bar two during the most recent series — the outliers were in Birmingham and at The Oval in the second innings when the hosts were under pressure in Tests they ultimately lost — but it would be disingenuous to suggest those results would have flipped had they batted with even more aggression.

The style has proven successful against most nations, with England winning 16 Tests and seven of nine series they have played against countries other than Australia and India. But the strike rate is far less formidable against its rival powerhouses.

While England has drawn two of the three series under McCullum against India and Australia, they have won five and lost eight of the 15 Tests that have been played against those rivals during his reign.

Former Australian fast bowler Brendon Julian believes England, which have lost 13 of their past 15 Tests in Australia without a victory, will be more competitive this summer but says they are still unclear as to what their identity should be.

This follows comments from England that they had been “too nice” in the infancy of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, with the tension between the two nations increasing from midway through what proved to be a spicy encounter.

“England are just as vulnerable as anyone but I don’t think they will be shaking in their boots looking at our batting line-up, because I don’t think Australia knows what its batting line-up is, so this will be a battle of the bowlers series, like the India one was,” Julian told foxsports.com.au

“I think both sides are capable of knocking over each other. They will be worrying about our bowling attack as well. But they are just as vulnerable as well.

“One minute they are trying to do ‘Bazball’. Then they are too nice. Now they have got to change their attitude. At the end of the day, India played really well and you have to give credit to India.

“In terms of England heading over here, they have to pick their best bowlers. (Jofra) Archer has to play at least the first two Test matches and maybe three. They can’t afford to rest and rotate early on. They have to get out of the blocks early. They need … their best bowling line-up to beat Australia.”

Julian, who believes Scott Boland has presented a strong case to play in front of Nathan Lyon on bouncier decks including Perth, said England should arrive as early as possible because “over here, in Australia, they are different pitches”.

“Zak Crawley has come back and done a pretty good job, but I was surprised that he came back and held his spot in that side,” he said.

“They talk about Joe Root being a phenomenal batsman, and he is, but he has never scored a hundred in Australia. Until you score runs in Australia, then you are really world class, so I think the pressure is on Joe Root.

“He is the key, because he is the best player in that team. But they won’t be able to be aggressive like they are in England. They are going to have to change their game plan a little bit.”

England will play a match against a Lions team and another against an Australian XI at Lilac Hill in Perth’s northeast prior to the opening Test of the series beginning on November 21.

“They need to get over here early. If they come here late and just have a bit of golf and a bit of net practice in Perth, that is not going to work,” Julian said.

“You have to get on the road. You have to get playing. You have to get that team unit together. In the past sometimes, they have come over and done it pretty easy, had a few net sessions, played a little golf, with big smiles. That is not going to work. They need to harden up.

“If they come over here and don’t have the right preparation, they will lose 4-1 or 4-nil.”

McCullum says England will learn from its experience in the Anderson-Tendulkar Series and try to improve further for the challenge of confronting Australia on home soil, with fielding sure to be a focus after they dropped several catches at The Oval.

He stressed he was proud of the way the hosts handled the series but noted the combative nature had “taken its toll with injuries” to players including Stokes and Chris Woakes, while Archer was also rested for the deciding Test.

“We’ll be able to pick out what has gone well and then start to work out how we keep improving so when we do arrive out in Australia, we give ourselves a huge chance,” he said.

“We’re … halfway through what we know was going to be an unbelievable 12 months of Test cricket (and) we know we’ve got some room to improve. You’re always learning anytime you get to see guys having to did deep and go to places they’ve maybe not been before.

“There’s lots to pick out as we give ourselves time to for this to digest and work out areas where we can look to improve for our next challenge.”

WHAT ABOUT THEIR ALL-STAR SKIPPER?

Border loves the manner with which Stokes, who missed the last Test due to a shoulder injury and will be sidelined for two months, leads England and expects him to be on the front foot against Australia from the opening ball of the Ashes.

“I don’t like send-offs. That’s one thing that should be wiped out. But a bit of argy-bargy during the game, it’s not a big deal to me,” he told Fox Sports News.

“Sometimes it’s a bad look … but I don’t think they’ll take a backward step when they go to Australia, that’s for sure. Stokes is not that sort of character. He’s a tough lad himself, that’s for sure. I just think it’s going to be a good, fiery series as well, but hopefully it is played in good spirit.”

While Stokes ultimately bowled himself into the ground when trying to secure England the series in the fourth Test at Old Trafford, McCullum said he never wanted the English captain to lead in any other way.

“He makes things happen with bat in hand, he has the most Test sixes, and he absorbs pressure better than anyone I have ever seen. Obviously he is an inspirational captain who the guys follow,” he said.

“He is always looking how to advance the game and transfer pressure onto the opposition. Through force of will he is able to get things to work and sometimes that means he has to bowl long periods or has to take himself to dark places.

“You can’t have one without the other and sometimes that does lead to injuries and that is just part and parcel of it. I would never want him to change. He will leave it all out there in Australia.”

Stokes, who said the series against India demonstrated that “Test cricket isn’t going anywhere” amid some concerns about its future, said the heroics on display through the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy showed England has the appetite for the fight.

“Going back to how much everyone has put into the series, you had guys go out with broken foots, you had guys go out with broken fingers, and Woakes go out to try to get his team over the line with a dislocated shoulder and one arm in a sling,” he told the BBC.

“It has been incredibly hard fought and it shows what it means to go out there and represent your country.”

Stokes, who was not going to play in The Hundred which began on Tuesday in England in order to prepare himself for the Ashes prior to the shoulder injury, is confident his team is in “a good place” as they look to the challenge ahead against Australia.

“We have a long time to the Ashes. I wasn’t planning on doing anything after this series anyway except to keep getting fitter and get ready for that,” he said.

“Obviously it will be a little bit different now and I’ll get stuck into the rehab, but by the time the Ashes series comes about, everything will be settled.

“We are in really good shape. In terms of where we are at the moment, I think we are in a really, really good place. We have come up against a very good Indian team here and I don’t think that should be underestimated.

“We are really happy with how the series has gone. Eight more runs and 3-1 looks a little bit different to 2-2, but we have to give a lot of credit to the way India turned up, particularly over the past two days, to bowl their team to victory.”

— Additional reporting by Dane Heverin