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Cricket

“You wonder if you’ll be able to walk again, jog again, run again, play cricket again,” says Johnny Bairstow

Johnny Bairstow, England’s keeper batter, is about to return to the national team after an eight-month absence due to a devastating leg injury sustained while playing golf in September last year. The ECB named him to the Test team for the one-off match against Ireland before the 2023 Ashes, which begin on June 1st at Lord’s.

Bairstow’s outstanding 2022 season was cut short by the accident. In Ben Stokes’ first summer in charge, his 681 runs, including four centuries, at an average of 75.66 saw him emerge as the emblem of an exciting new type of cricket. Barstow returned to the field for Yorkshire in the second-division competition, scoring runs and keeping wickets, which he is content to do for the remainder of the summer. With Ireland and the home Ashes on the horizon, Bairstow will have a dual role to play, and after nearly recovering from the injury that threatened to terminate his career, Bairstow is glad to be back and ready to go.

The months spent gradually rebuilding were fraught with anxieties and concerns. He was initially thought to be healthy enough to fulfil his IPL contract with Punjab Kings, which added to his dissatisfaction throughout his extended rehabilitation time. Aside from cricket, there were concerns that daily life would never be the same again.

“You wonder whether or not you’ll be able to walk again, jog again, run again, play cricket again,” Bairstow said. “Absolutely, those things do go through your mind. It depends how long you think about them. There are many different things, until you get back to playing, well… you wonder, is it going to feel the same,” he added.
 
 
 
“It’s quite funny, people have said, ‘You’re limping’. Well, I don’t know anyone that’s had a major lower leg injury that does walk exactly the same as previously. There are going to be little limps, there are going to be aches, pains, that’s part and parcel of it. Whether it’s knees, hips, ankles, lower back, whatever it is. When there’s trauma, there’s going to be an adaptation to the way that your body moves or your body walks, that’s just part and parcel of it. I’m not going to be running exactly the same as last year, but that’s okay,” Bairstow explained.
 

While he confesses to limping despite being cleared by the medical team to go about his business, Barstow stated keeping shouldn’t be a concern and that after keeping wickets for almost 100 overs for Yorkshire, he is confident of doing so for the six Tests ahead.

“I don’t think it’s different to fielding – when you’re sprinting, changing direction,” Bairstow said of wicket keeping. “You’re squatting at the stumps and moving laterally, but you’re not running at 25ks to the boundary. So, it’s a different kind of fitness – the old legs and glutes are a bit stiff after that first day in the dirt but it’s part and parcel of it. That first second XI game (against Nottinghamshire before his return to 1st XI cricket), I kept 100 overs in the game. The last two Champo games – it’s been building nicely. A day off, train, train, train. It’s been back-to-back and there hasn’t been any reaction. If it swelled up, you know there’s something wrong. So it’s positive,” he said.
 
Barstow is no stranger to keeping wickets across forms, and before of the crucial Ashes assignment, he is happy to take care of the glove duties behind the wickets. Bairstow’s relationship with the gloves is an intriguing tale that should not be forgotten. Jonny’s late father, David, kept for England, and it has long been a source of pleasure that he has done the same for Yorkshire and England in 49 of his 89 caps.
 
“I’m excited. It’s going to be a new challenge again because it is obviously something I’ve done quite a bit, but then there are periods when you don’t do it as much because you’re playing as a batter. Or playing white-ball cricket or whatever. It is an exciting challenge that awaits,” Bairstow explained.
 
Bairstow admits to having a big sense of satisfaction when McCullum told him of his selection. Following the hardships of the winter, a new chapter has begun.
 
 
“I was buzzing. It filled me with a lot of pride again. I’ve said there’s been some dark times this winter and it’s been tough so to get that phone call after all the emotions you go through and everything else this winter…there’s a huge amount of pride that goes into it. Yes, getting that phone call…it was awesome,” he concluded.
 
Meanwhile, Barstow will play for Yorkshire in the T20 Blast this weekend at Edgbaston before rejoining the England group ahead of the Ireland Test.
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