Historic drawn Test Match as India deploy anti-Bazball
In 2024 across the world of Test cricket there were only two drawn games. I’m not sure what the running total for 2025 is but England’s draw with India at Old Trafford on 27th July was only the second in the Ben Stokes era dating back to 2022. The only other one was also at Old Trafford but that was due to bad weather.
The draw saw some unattractive examples of imperial preference, the assumption being that India could not possibly bat five complete Test sessions and only lose two wickets. They did however and it was Test cricket at its best. It concluded with centuries for Jajeda and Washington and what media reports have described as chuntering from England.
Bazball after all doesn’t do draws and it can be understood why. Draws can be nothing games where both sides score big runs in the first innings and there is then not enough time left to get a result. It happens and it is still happening.
The England v India series is not like that. England are two one up in the series with the final match at the Oval from Thursday (the restricted time span of the five Test series due to the Hundred is an issue in itself). Both sides are closely matched.
England rely a lot on captain Ben Stokes who is likely in the final period of his career and Joe Root who appears able to go on at the highest level for quite a while.
Where Bazball goes next is an important question, as is how much of a force a young (in the main) Indian team can become in world cricket particularly away from home
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