• England declared their innings on 393/8 after opting to bat in the first Ashes 2023 Test.

  • Joe Root played a brilliant reverse scoop off Scott Boland's delivery and hammered his 30th Test ton.

WATCH: Joe Root’s reverse scoop six and England’s bazball approach in the Ashes 2023 stuns everyone; Mahesh Babu & others react
Joe Root during the first Ashes 2023 Test (Image Source: Twitter)

The bazball approach of England in Test cricket once again took the cricketing world by storm as the English team put up a brilliant batting show against Australia in the first Ashes 2023 Test and declared their first innings on a score of 393/8 on Day 1 itself.

Winning the toss and opting to bat first, England got off to a great start, with Zak Crawley scoring impressive 61 runs off 73 balls. However, Crawly missed to convert the half-century into a big score and was soon dismissed by Scott Boland. The pair of Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow then ensured that England finished on a competitive score. While Bairstow added 78 runs, Root went on to register his 30th Test ton and remained unbeaten on 118 off 152 balls, with the hosts declaring their innings on 393/8.

It is worth mentioning that Root smashed as many as eleven boundaries comprising four sixes during his knock, and one of those maximums came off an unconventional reverse scoop by the former England captain that left everyone awestruck.

It all happened on the fifth ball of the 53rd over when Boland delivered a fuller outside off-ball to Root, and he quickly brought out the audacious reverse scoop to send the red leather over the fence. Many popular personalities widely appreciated the shot by the right-handed batter, and they even termed it the effect of the Bazball era.

Apart from Root’s exploit and his unorthodox shot, what attracted the praise from cricket enthusiasts was England’s bazball mode of play and their declaration of innings on Day 1 itself. Many reacted to the English team’s dominating batting display by saying, “Bazball era has begun.”

Here’s how Twitter reacted:

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CATEGORY: Ashes Joe Root

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About the Author:
VISHWANATH HARIHARAN
Vishwanath Hariharan is Content Strategist at CricketTimes.com. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communication. From breaking news stories to in-depth features and opinion pieces, he has covered a wide range of topics. Vishwanath is very fond of watching cricket. Like many others, he too grew up watching, playing, and imitating his favourite players of the game. MS Dhoni is like a demigod to him. You can connect with him at vishwanath.hariharan@crickettimes.com and follow him on Twitter & Linkedin.