‘It can come unstuck pretty quickly’: Paine backs Australia against Bazball

Tim Paine has some tongue-in-cheek advice for Australia’s rapidly approaching Ashes campaign: take one more wicket at Headingley and don’t burn your reviews.

The last Australian captain to retain the Ashes in England for two decades, the 2-2 result still “burns” Paine after his side were unable to win the away series in 2019. England’s miracle victory at Australia’s bogey ground, Headingley, was a major factor.

Paine wonders if that last, fateful day at Headingley, was, in fact, the beginning of Bazball when — with 73 still needed for victory and just one wicket remaining — now captain Ben Stokes unleashed, running down the target in just 10 overs to level the series after three Tests. The Australians fluffed their lines, dropping a catch, missing a runout and burning a review that would have won them the game when a plumb lbw was not given.

“I was actually thinking about that last night. I wonder if that was the moment for him where he thought ‘this is not a bad way to play’,” a reflective Paine told this masthead.

“He was kind of forced to play that way, as you can be sometimes when you’re eight or nine (wickets) down, and then I think it’s something he thought ‘it’s not a bad way to go about it’.”

But Paine is unconvinced that a such a spectacular one-off performance, when Stokes finished unbeaten on 135 with 11 fours and eight sixes, can be repeated more regularly by England’s batsmen during a five-Test series as they attempt to unleash Bazball on the Australians for the first time.

Across 13 Tests under coach Brendon McCullum and the captaincy of Stokes, England have scored at almost five runs an over, a sustained assault that has never been matched in the history of the game.

“I still think if the Aussies get it right and play their best cricket, I think it (Bazball) can come unstuck pretty quickly for England,” Paine said, pointing out that England have a similar team to the one that lost 4-0 in Australia just 18 months ago.

“It will be fascinating to see how the Aussies go about it. Do you set really defensive fields because they’ve shown that they’ll come out to score really quickly? Keep your catchers up and drops some blokes out on the fence and see if England want to park their ego, or they’re going to keep trying to go hard?

“I do think Australia have got the edge. I think whilst England are playing a different brand of cricket, and they’re confident about it, to me the team looks pretty similar to what we saw in Australia last year.

“So there’s some guys there that yeah, they’ve had a good 12 months, but the Ashes intensity and the scrutiny goes up one hundred per cent. It only takes a nick or a couple of lbws and I think some of those guys might start doubting themselves again.

“I can’t wait to watch it and England have been terrific to watch the way they’re changing the game but yeah, I think the way they play is also going to open up some opportunities for Australia with the quality of the bowling attack that we’ve got.”

Paine was also surprised to hear that Stokes wants flat, fast pitches to aid England’s attacking approaching.

“That’s not what I’d be doing,” he said. “I think that sounds too much like Australian conditions for me, and that has not worked for them. I think that favours Australia.”

Paine questioned how much impact England’s ageing fast bowlers can have given Stuart Broad is 37 next week and Jimmy Anderson 41 next month.

“I think the keys for them is to get the ball moving. That’s where their opportunity lies. Whereas if the balls not swinging they might lack a bit of penetration as they’re getting older, as greater bowlers as they’ve been.

“If the ball is not moving, the pitches aren’t offering them assistance, I think the Aussie batters can dominate.

“Having said that, I’m fascinated to see what will happen if their batters do come off because our bowlers have never been put under that kind of pressure.”

Watch every ball of the 2023 Ashes series live and exclusive on Channel 9 and 9Now.

Sports news, results and expert commentary. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.