Jonny Bairstow not guaranteed spot in the team despite stunning form

English wicket-keeper batsman Jonny Bairstow might not get a chance to be the part of the starting eleven for England in the upcoming edition of the ICC Champions Trophy. This comes to the fore despite the fact that the English batsman has been in a stunning form in the recent times. He has been one of the most consistent run getters for the team in the recent times.

Needless to say, Bairstow has chipped in with cameos in every opportunity that he has got in the England colors. Last year, he had finished with 1470 runs at a staggering average of 58 in the Test format of the game. His effort is the highest ever recorded by a wicket-keeper batsman. Most recently, he hit a belligerent 70 odd runs in almost half the number of balls faced in the 2nd ODI against Ireland.

The efforts of Jonny Bairstow in the match had forced the English coach Trevor Bayliss to remark that it will be tough for the team to leave out Bairstow from the scheme of things considering his fine form. However, as per the recent quotes in News18, English skipper Eoin Morgan feels that Bairstow does not fit in the lineup for now. He noted that the team is already beefed up with the return of Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes.

“It is looking like that at the moment, which is unfortunate for him (Jonny Bairstow). You can’t guarantee how often he would be used. We’ve a really strong batting lineup, particularly when Stokes, Chris Woakes and Buttler come back in. I’m not sure about justifying an out-and-out batter at seven,” quoted Morgan.

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Adding further on the same note, he quipped that the team has slots for the all-rounders at the moment with Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali fitting the bill for the Champions Trophy.

“With Ben coming back into the side, it allows us to play another all-rounder – with Mo at seven. I suppose you could go five out-and-out quicks, with Ben and one spinner. But planning towards the tournament, we envisage better weather and slower pitches so we’ll need slower bowlers potentially,” Morgan added.