I have been in and out, learning to deal with it is a skill: Jonny Bairstow

English wicket-keeper batsman Jonny Bairstow has done nothing wrong in the last couple of years on the cricket field for England. Despite this, he has failed to be a regular member of the national side. Every time he has stepped on to the field, he has made the most out of it. Recently, in the first T20I against South Africa, he hit a belligerent unbeaten 60 off 35 balls to seal the game for England.

Last year, he was the second leading run getter in Test cricket for England. He mustered over 1000 runs and entered the record books for most runs in a calendar year by a wicket keeper in Test cricket. In the ODIs, it is often Jos Buttler who takes the gloves. Hence, the chances of Jonny Bairstow playing gets minimalized.

It is indeed unfortunate to have been missing out on games despite being in prime form of the cricket career. However, the 27 year old has learned to live with it. As per the quotes in News18, he remarked that coping with the fact that he will be in and out is a skill. He is not worrying about what comes next.

“I’ve been in and out, and learning to deal with that is a skill in itself. You’ve got to deal with the fact that you can score runs, but you may not be in for the next game. Not worrying about it is the biggest thing. Just being comfortable within yourself, within your surroundings,” quoted Jonny Bairstow.

Come of ages

He further noted that in the last three years, he has evolved a lot as a cricketer. He has become mature enough to handle tricky situations both on and off the field. Bairstow is happy with the fact that he knows he can construct a big innings at will.

“I’ve grown up a lot over the last three years. I’m not sure what I can particularly put that down to, but naturally you grow from a boy to a man. You learn about how to play, how to construct an innings. I’ve been in squads, played, not played, and in different formats. If you pick every bit of it apart, then you get yourself head up. There’s more to life,” he conceded.