Jonny Bairstow lit up English cricket this summer.
His stunning form with the bat was a breathtaking sight to behold and his 681 runs at an eye-catching average of 75.66 was one of the key reasons England won an impressive six of their seven Tests against New Zealand, India and South Africa.
Bairstow dazzled with four centuries as England bounced back in fine style having suffered a miserable run of form until new coach Brendan McCullum and skipper Ben Stokes had steered a sinking ship in a new and exciting direction.
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England had won just one of their previous 17 Tests in a miserable run of form which saw the English Cricket Board (ECB) opt for a brave new approach.
The rewards have been there to see with Bairstow having been one of the team’s most inspirational players with his gutsy innings just when his country – and his teammates – needed him. In all he amassed 1061 runs and scored six centuries in 2022 – making him England’s star performer.
“It’s all a bit of a blur, I don’t remember any of it,” joked Bairstow.
“It’s one of those summers we’ll remember as a group of players – and as a nation – and we’ll look back at very, very fondly.
"I remember the summer of 2005 and the guys who won the Ashes, I just remember the spectacle they put on.
“I hope as a group of people we’ve inspired the next generation - or even people that haven't played the game of cricket who have flipped on and we've entertained them.
“I’m proud of the way we’ve gone about things and we’ve been brave enough to go towards the danger.”
Yorkshireman Bairstow believes New Zealander McCullum has been a breath of fresh air with his brave ‘Baz-ball’ brand of cricket which has enthralled packed crowds all summer, with England back to their best.
And the 33-year-old, who made his England Test debut a decade ago, is adamant McCullum and Stokes deserve plenty of credit for driving the team in a new direction.
“We’ve been brave enough to actually try and shift things towards the danger,” added Bairstow.
“People have speculated about whether it’s the right or wrong approach, but we’re not going to get it right all the time.
“But we’ve won six out of seven Test matches this summer, which hasn’t been done for a long, long time. So we must be doing something right.
“We’ve been brave enough to take that challenge head-on.
“It was one in 17 Tests that we’d won – and then we’ve won six out of seven, so there has been a shift. And it’s been a seismic shift as well.
“It’s a shift that has obviously worked and as a group of players we’ve been brave enough to take that challenge and confront the danger.”
Bairstow sparkled with fine centuries in Antigua and Sydney last season, but despite his heroics with the willow, the experienced international is just delighted England are giving their loyal supporters something to smile about.
“To look back at one thing is probably not fair,” stressed Bairstow. “It would probably wouldn’t be one of the hundreds, though, if I’m being honest.”
However, just when Bairstow was in his prime, he suffered a freak injury while playing golf.
He slipped on a tee box and broke a leg and dislocated an ankle. The prognosis is no more cricket this season, which means agonisingly missing out on the Twenty20 World Cup – and a long and frustrating road to recovery.
But Bairstow successfully underwent surgery and is focused on fighting his way back for next season.
“I’m only at the start of my recovery cycle,” admitted Bairstow. “I had surgery a few weeks ago and I went to see my specialist a few days ago – and they were happy.
“I’ve had my staples out, so hopefully soon I’ll be able to update people on the timescales of my recovery.
“It’s frustrating because with healing you don’t know how long things take and you can have setbacks.
“But it’s a setback in the grand scheme of things in my career.
“I’ve just got to take it [the injury] forward and look at it in a different way.
“It’s definitely going to be next year before I come back, there’s no doubts about that.
“Unfortunately it’s a rather large injury. It’s such a freakish thing that’s happened, so we’re definitely not looking at anything to do with 2022. It’s definitely starting with 2023 I’m afraid.
“It’s desperately disappointing with the World Cup coming up in Australia – and then you’ve got the Test matches in Pakistan as well.
“I’m gutted to miss those, but right now I’m just focused on making sure the healing process works. I’ll get on the ice machine and hope everything takes care of itself.
“I just want to be able to put my best foot forward for when the opportunity arises again.
“It’s really weird not being able to do anything, it’s not my personality, you know hobbling around on crutches.
“The ice machine is going to be a huge part of my life for the next few months if I’m being honest.
“I’ll be getting some help from my mum, but I know it’s going to be a slow process with things.
“This early stage is the trickiest because you need to get all the healing right because, if you try to do things too sudden, then it affects things down the line.
“I’m going to do a university course in strategic leadership course, so there’s plenty of things to keep me entertained.
“I’ll be an expert cook and expert fire-maker by the end of this winter, because I’ll be making plenty of them.
“I’m excited to spend a bit of time. I’ve been very fortunate these last 12-14 years that I’ve never had a winter off at home, so you’ve got to try and take a positive out of a negative if you can do that.
“I’m going to spend time with my family and loved ones, and also my friends who I don’t get to see much during the winter.”
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