Zak attack: Why Crawley is the model Bazball player

In an interview before this Ashes series, Brendon McCullum pondered the prospect of a day when Zak Crawley went off with a big score.

“Zak has a much stronger offensive game, and we believe in his ability to put opposition teams under pressure. Every now and then he’s going to get out. It can happen, but if he gets going ...” McCullum trailed off, as though not wanting to actually say the words.

On day two at Old Trafford, as vital as any day of this series, Crawley did indeed get going. He is as much the key player for England in the Bazball era as Scott Hatteberg was in the film adaptation of Moneyball, the film about Billy Beane and the Oakland A’s.

Hatteberg was a catcher turned into a first baseman because of his hitting ability, fitting him into a team that was fashioned into success from unpromising origins.

Crawley, likewise, was shaping as something of a mediocrity before McCullum and Ben Stokes gave him permission to attack, using his height and power to put pressure on bowlers. It doesn’t always work, but as was seen on a sunny afternoon in Manchester, when it does the sky is the limit.

For Crawley, the innings of 189 from 182 balls, including a thrilling 26-ball sprint from 50 to 100, was vindication for listening to McCullum and Stokes and doing what he does best, rather than trying to bat like his partner for 206 runs, the phlegmatic Joe Root. England were 4-384 at stumps, leading by 67.

“It’s fair to say that under any other coach or captain I probably wouldn’t be playing this series,” Crawley said. “So, to be backed by them gives me a lot of confidence. They’ve always said not to worry about being consistent, just to go out and try to win games for England.

“We chat a lot and he [McCullum] is really good at that, having those little conversations with you about playing. I understand what he means, I’m at my best when I’m putting them under pressure and attacking and so is he.

“He maybe wasn’t the most consistent, but he played some incredible knocks and I think that’s what he wants from me. As long as they want that from me, I’m happy to take that punt at the top of the order.”

Looking back to the 2021-22 Ashes series in Australia, Crawley offered moments of promise, not least at the SCG. But he was struggling to put it all together.

“I was just trying to sit on bowlers and make them come to me and try and build an innings like that,” he said. “I found at this level you get so many good balls, especially at the top of the order, I was getting a couple of nice scores then getting out and it wasn’t really me.

“I always felt an itch to attack a bit more and when you’re playing with such great players like Joe and Stokesy, you try and emulate them a lot, but there comes a point where you have to bat your own way as well. Just trying to be a bit more positive is more like me.”

Crawley persisted in this mindset despite the frustrations of the first three Tests, including a pair of innings at Headingley where he threatened to go big, only to edge Mitch Marsh behind.

“Those thoughts are always coming into your head,” he said of the doubts all batters face. “When I got out at Headingley I got a couple of nice knocks there but didn’t convert them, and I was thinking too much about the score rather than being immersed in the moment.

“I was a lot more present today and I think that helped me go on and get a big score rather than worrying about getting a big score before you’re already there.”

Overall, the effect of Crawley’s innings was not only to keep England in the Ashes despite an indifferent weather forecast for Manchester over the next three days, but also to underline that Bazball is the best way forward for this England side.

“We’ve shown that being positive suits our players,” Crawley said. “At other times we absorb pressure but most of the time we try and put pressure back on them and get them thinking about what they’re doing rather than what we’re doing.

“I feel like today was a really good day for that. And even yesterday [Chris] Woakes bowled so well and was putting pressure on them with the ball. It works with both bat and ball. We’ve played really well so far in this game over the last two days and hopefully we continue that in the next couple of days.”

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