England head coach Brendon McCullum defended wicket-keeper batter Jonny Bairstow’s performance despite his errors in the first Ashes Test, which England lost by two wickets, adding “at No. 7 is a real weapon for us.”
Bairstow was guilty of not going for Usman Khawaja’s catch in James Anderson’s over in the 2nd innings when the Australian opener was batting on 5. Khawaja went on to score a match-winning 65 in the second innings. Bairstow also dropped Alex Carey twice and missed a stumping against Cameron Green.
The senior batter took 5 catches but it was those missed chances that saw him face criticism after England lost a tightly fought match in Birmingham. The hosts lost the Test by just 2 wickets after Australia went on to successfully chase 281 on the final day of the Test.
“They were pretty tough mistakes,” said McCullum, who played 101 Tests for New Zealand,” McCullum told the British media on Wednesday.
“I’ve kept over here before, it’s not the easiest place to keep. I actually thought Jonny kept really well right throughout. If you look at the way he progressed throughout the game, he found a natural rhythm.
Bairstow’s first innings of the Test game demonstrated that edge: stepping out at 176 for 5, he smashed 78 off 78 balls, the competition’s third-highest score.
