'For Bazball to flourish, the England players must demonstrate a deep respect for the Australian bowlers, the conditions, and the match situation.'
Batting great Greg Chappell had a blunt advice for Ben Stokes-led England, saying while the visitors should persist with their aggressive Bazball tactics they must looking towards improving the execution to achieve success.
England suffered a heavy eight-wicket defeat against Australia in Perth in the first Ashes Test. While they scored with the run rate of 5.24 in the first innings and 4.73 in the second, they could only manage the totals of 172 and 164 across the two innings.
Crucially, Chappell says abandoning Bazball now would hand Australia a psychological victory.
"The mindset behind Bazball - to play bold, positive, and exciting cricket - need not change. It is the fuel that powers this England team. However, as the harsh realities of the first Test defeat have shown, the execution must evolve. The exhilarating promise of the philosophy can become a reckless gamble if not tempered by discipline and a respect for the fundamentals," the former Australia captain said in his column for The Sydney Morning Herald.
"The adjustments England must make are simple, yet profound. There is no need for an overhaul of the team's core identity. In fact, to change tack now would suit the Australians, as it would show that they have got inside their heads and would probably lead to certain defeat," he added.
Chappell said that while he admires positive cricket, a "full-frontal assault" approach is insult to the intelligence of the players and the public alike, stating that Bazball as an approach should be adopted when the situation and the conditions allow.
"I am a fervent admirer of positive cricket and champion it at every opportunity. But the concept of a full-frontal assault as an invariant, all-weather game plan is an insult to the intelligence of the players and the public. Bazball is a concept that should be applied when the situation and conditions allow, not a rigid dogma that demands the same action regardless of the circumstances," he added.
Chappell is of the view that England needed to identify that while the intent is to score runs, the method needs to be disciplined and calculated.
"Somewhere on the journey between Perth and Brisbane, the England batters required an honest conversation. They needed to recognise that while the intent is to score, the method requires more discipline and calculated aggression," he said.
"For Bazball to flourish, the England players must demonstrate a deep respect for the Australian bowlers, the conditions, and the match situation. Every batter would love to be able to attack every ball. But success lies in being judicious -- knowing precisely which balls to attack and which ones to defend or leave."
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