Will Jonny Bairstow bat in the second innings? Paul Farbrace responds

England are chasing an unimaginable 521 runs in the second innings to win the third Test match at Trent Bridge. The visitors piled on the agony for them on the third day and stretched their lead thanks to Virat Kohli who once again stood tall among all while others also contributed. Meanwhile, Jonny Bairstow was hit on the tip of the finger in the first session and has fractured the left middle finger. However, England assistant coach Paul Farbrace has opened up more on his injury.

It was in the 40th over of India’s innings when the wicketkeeper was grimacing in pain after failing to gather the swinging James Anderson delivery. He then had to leave the field and was sent to the hospital for the X-Ray. Bairstow didn’t take the field for the latter part of the day while Jos Buttler took over the gloves from him.

Will he bat?

Paul Farbrace, after the end of the third day’s play, was asked about Jonny Bairstow’s injury and he cleared that his tip of the finger is fractured. More than anything, there was a worry in England camp if he will be bat in the second innings. Farbrace said that the if the physios and the doctors feel that Bairstow batting has a chance of worsening the injury then he won’t be coming out.

“There will be a big bit of plastic stuck over his glove. Let’s see how he goes over the next couple of days. If there was a risk of making it worse, he wouldn’t bat,” he told reporters while also explaining the extent of the injury. He also went on to say that the doctors are trying to relieve the pressure on his nail and they will have to wait and see how he copes.

“There is a fracture in the tip of his finger, and the doc’s been working on him this evening to relieve a bit of pressure in the nail, so hopefully when needed he’ll be OK. I’m no expert on broken fingers but because it’s not a displaced break, then he should be OK, and it’s just a case of managing the pain level as opposed to doing any further damage,” Farbrace further added.

In case, Bairstow is ruled out of the series, it will be a huge blow for England in the Test series as he was the highest run-getter for them thus far in four innings.

[interaction id=”5b7a8242afc9e4aa8b1cc37b”]

Keep following CricTracker for more news and updates.