England legend Alastair Cook compared teammate Jonny Bairstow’s blitzkrieg in the second Test, which saw the 32-year-old smash 136 off 92 balls, to West Indies legend Brian Lara’s cricket on ‘cheat mode’.
Jonathan Bairstow confirms Alastair Cook’s decision as England thump Sri Lanka
Bairstow came in at a time when England suffered a top-order collapse, with Jack Crawley (0) and both first innings centuries, Ollie Pope (18) and Joe Root (3), back in the dressing room . But Bairstow changed the color of the game with his seven maximums and 14 fours at a strike rate of almost 148.
He and captain Ben Stokes scored an unbeaten 75 as England secured a five-wicket win at Trent Bridge to take a 2-0 lead in the three-Test series. Bairstow completed her innings to perfection as she chased down 299, completing her maiden half-century in 51 balls before going fearless and consuming just 26 more balls to reach three figures.
Bairstow thus scored the second fastest Test century for England in just 77 balls, leaving him behind Gilbert Jessop. Jessup completed his century in 76 balls as England chased down 263 to secure a consolation win in the 1902 Ashes series, said a report in Mirror.co.uk.
Speaking on commentary for the BBC Test Match Special, Cook said: “I am probably the least qualified to comment on what happened in the last hour.
“So I’m going to sum it up in one sentence. What Jonny Bairstow just played is like playing Brian Lara Cricket On cheat mode,” Cook added.
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