CricViz analysis: Bazball commitment to batting unshaken in Ashes

Another fantastic contest in the 2023 men's Ashes saw England narrow the series 2-1 with a dramatic victory by three wickets in Leeds. Contributions with bat and ball from newcomers to the eleven, Mark Wood and Chris Woakes, got the hosts over the line, with Yorkshire's Harry Brook notching 75 in a tense chase of 251.

For the good of the contest, it was a vital win. While the Ashes has been a wonderful spectacle with a huge amount of excitement and controversy, most of the air would have left the balloon had England lost and gone 3-0 down and conceded the series. Hopefully, for all concerned, the spectacle continues in the final two Tests.

One of the many storylines in this series, maybe the main one, has been around England's approach with the bat. 'BazBall', the ultra-attacking batting strategy introduced under the leadership of Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, has had mixed fortunes. England drew a lot of criticism for their batting approach after both Tests, particularly after the second game at Lord's.

The passage of play where Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, and Joe Root all played loose strokes to the Australian short ball barrage was the key period in the minds of critics, where the visitors – down a bowler in the absence of injured Nathan Lyon – were allowed back into the contest. Critics thought England were too attacking, too much of the time.

Maybe that was the case. But what's been undeniable is England's commitment to this approach. Across this series, England have attacked – attempted to hit a boundary – just under half of the deliveries they have faced. Going after 45% of the balls, England's figure this series is the sixth highest in recorded history, going back to 2006. Three of the five series above this are BazBall-era England.

What's specifically interesting is how consistent those numbers have been. England's batters have attacked between 42% and 47% of deliveries in all the innings in this series. Their tempo, or at least their attempted tempo, has stayed almost identical, regardless of the conditions, match situation or overall performance. England have a speed at which they bat, and they stick to it.

In some ways, that's a negative. Regardless of the overwhelming benefits of England's approach, in squeezing the best out of this specific group of players, there are always going to be moments when a touch more caution would be helpful. It may only be for one session a Test, maybe one session a series, but that is simply the case.

However, England would counter, rightly, that in their eyes, attack is still the best form of defence, even in strained circumstances. Stokes' side have averaged 33 with the bat this series and Australia 32. It's a blunt comparison, but it's vital that people don't conflate slower scoring with more runs. Comparatively, defensive batting leads to more time at the crease, but not necessarily more runs.

It's also underrated how this consistency – in approach, not output – clears the mind of the batters. Stuart Broad spoke before Day 4, saying England were going to approach the chase like they would in an ODI. The fact that they eventually ended up taking precisely 50 overs (254/7) to make those runs was a quirk, a pleasing little nugget, but it tells a story. BazBall's much-discussed love affair with the fourth innings run chase is all part of this process of England's batters knowing what they need to do, and not having to overthink how they are going to do it.

This is not triumphalism. While it's been frustrating to see all of England's brilliant work from the last 12 months written off after two tight defeats to a very good side, they do still need to win the last two games for their approach to be fully vindicated in the eyes of a cynical overseas viewership. But in the short term it'll be a relief for England that while the results haven't been ideal, their process – that idealised tempo – is still running smoothly.