IND vs ENG Test Series: Bazball will not be applicable here - Sourav Ganguly on England’s approach

England will look at the re-launch of the Bazball in the ongoing Hyderabad Test against India as they look to extend their lead on Day 4. Steered by the excellent Ollie Pope's unbeaten 148, England’s Bazball approach could come to haunt India having established a 126-run lead in the Hyderabad Test. However, former India captain Sourav Ganguly reckons England’s fast-attacking batting style termed Bazball won’t work in India as the tracks are friendlier to the spin.

Ganguly comments on Bazball

"Bazball is an approach where the match is played in a fast manner. India have spinning wickets and so, Bazball will not be applicable here,” Ganguly said while speaking to India Today.

"India will win the series, the matter is whether they will win it 4-0 or 5-0. Every Test will be decisive. England could have won this Test match had they batted well. One cannot win against India by making 230 or 240 runs on Indian soil. Had they made 350 or 400, they could have beaten India, but they weren't able to do that. It's a tough series for England. Any team other than the Australia of that era could not create any impact here,” the former BCCI president added.

England were 163/5 at one stage and looked on the verge of another collapse with the bat. However, Ollie Pope’s unbeaten 148 coupled with resolute knocks from Ben Duckett (47) and Ben Foakes (34) helped England take the lead. One key factor during the innings was the reverse sweep which yielded them valuable runs. Overall, England made 79 runs off 46 balls using various kinds of sweeps. This helped England end the day at 316/6 and lead by 126 runs with four wickets in hand.

With the game firmly in balance now, Ben Stokes’ men will look to establish a lead of around 200-250 runs which will be a challenging total. They still have four wickets in hand and have found the formulato tackle the Indian bowling. With six sessions still to be played in Hyderabad and no signs of bad weather, the opening Test match is guaranteed a result.