'Play with aggression, but have that bit of common sense too' - Geoffrey Boycott slams England's Bazball approach

Geoffrey Boycott, the legendary England opening batter, has once again voiced his concerns over the national team's Bazball approach to Test cricket. Known for his no-nonsense commentary, Boycott has emphasised the need for the team to balance their aggressive mindset with a healthy dose of common sense.

Boycott's criticism stems from England's recent failures in two high-profile series, the Ashes against Australia in 2023 and the recent series against India earlier this year. Despite their new strategy of playing an attacking brand of cricket under head coach Brendon McCullum, the results have not always gone their way, leading the Yorkshire great to question the team's methods.

“There are some amazing decisions under Brendon McCullum (England Test head coach), as he has changed the (team’s) mindset into more positive. But they have gone a bit too far with it," said Boycott in Midwicket Stories.

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Heavens! Those three have some 900 wickets among them in Tests: Geoffrey Boycott

Boycott believes that the England team needs to learn to respect their opposition and the conditions they face.

“They want to save England cricket, the whole of Test cricket. But no Sir, the objective is to win a Test match or series, We lost two Ashes Tests and with it the series, playing stupid cricket, and the same happened against India. They came to the series saying we have done practice in Abu Dhabi and all. But Players like (Ravichandran) Ashwin, (Ravindra) Jadeja, and Kuldeep (Yadav) got their wickets not without talent," he further added.

He asked the team to use a bit of common sense while playing, “Heavens! Those three have some 900 wickets among them in Tests. And we have a captain (Ben Stokes) who does not bowl. So, play with aggression, which is fair, but have that bit of common sense too,” said The Yorkshire great.

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The former England opener also questioned the team's over-reliance on veteran pacer James Anderson, who recently completed 700 Test wickets. "To be fair to Jimmy, he was a great bowler, I mean he is still good. But he is not what he used to be as a bowler. When was the last time he bowled 20 overs or more in an innings, he bowled 12 or 14 overs per innings, and that puts pressure on other bowlers,” said Boycott.