Jonny Bairstow - England - WK-Batsman

A right-handed wicket-keeping batsman who plays for Yorkshire, Jonny Bairstow is the son of former England keeper David Bairstow. His introduction to the game was natural and came at an early age, and within no time rich accolades came his way. He was chosen as the winner of the Young Wisden Schools Cricketer of the year award for his 654 runs in the 2007 season. Soon, he went on to represent Yorkshire's second XI and impressed many with his consistent batting, scoring 308 runs at an average of 61.6 in 2008. This included a 139 not out against Worcestershire at Headingley Carnegie. In October that year, Bairstow signed a full time contract with the county side.

On his first class debut in 2009, he top-scored with an unbeaten 82 in the second innings. He went on to become a regular in the county team over the next two years, and averaged more than forty in both. He scored eight fifties, but could not convert them into triple-figure scores. 2011 turned out to be a better year for the youngster, as he was selected in the England Lions squad for the tour to West Indies in January. In May that year, he scored his maiden first-class century (which he converted into a double) and was picked for the national squad to play against Ireland in an ODI game in August. However, he was not selected in the playing eleven.

His first international appearance came in the fifth ODI game against the visiting Indians in Cardiff, and he made it special with a stunning 21-ball 41 to help England win the match. Further success during a warm-up match against India and in T20s against Pakistan led to Bairstow's first Test call to face West Indies. At the beginning of the 2012 season, Baristow had hit two brilliant hundreds for Yorkshire and was eager to capitalize on that achievement. His Test debut against West Indies, however, was not that eventful and was mediocre with the bat.

He was then ignored for the first two Tests against South Africa in 2012 in favour of Ravi Bopara but was recalled for the third Test when Kevin Pietersen was dropped. Bairstow responded effectively by hitting a gritty 95 and left the field to a standing ovation. He again hit a classy half century in the second innings but it was not enough to help England to victory. He later went on to hit his second highest first-class score of 182 against Leicestershire at Scarborough in the LV Championship and also managed a terrific 68* in the semi finals of Friends Life T20 against Sussex.

Although Bairstow was selected in the England squad for the 2012 ICC World Twenty20, his contribution was negligible and failed to flourish with the bat. Bairstow was included in the England team that toured India in 2012-2013 and performed exceptionally well in the warm-up match against Mumbai A, hitting a remarkable 118. He was only included in the squad for the second Test to replace Ian Bell but did not make a significant contribution to warrant an inclusion for the third Test.

A strong 64 laced with powerful cuts and controlled pulls at his home ground in Headingley against the Kiwis in 2013 handed Bairstow his much awaited Ashes debut at Nottingham. However, Bairstow managed only a lone fifty in the 4 games he played to cap a rather shoddy series. Bairstow then traveled to Australia for the return Ashes series and played a couple of games at Melbourne and Sydney respectively, but could not do anything special to bail his side out of trouble. It was the tour of South Africa in 2015 that saw Bairstow turning to his best.

The wicket-keeper batsman made his maiden Test hundred in Cape Town, was involved in a stunning 399-run stand with Ben Stokes for the sixth wicket and ended the series with 359 runs at an astonishing average of 89.75. He then began the home summer with two hundreds against Sri Lanka. A solid series against Pakistan was followed by solid showing in his first tour of the sub-continent. 2016 was a year to remember for Bairstow - not just for his 1470 runs at an average of 58.8 but also for his 70 dismissals as a wicket-keeper, a record for the most dismissals by a keeper in a calendar year.

Every English and Australian player is defined by how they fare in the Ashes. Although England suffered a hammering in Australia during the 2017-18 series, Bairstow was among the very few visiting batsmen to impress. Unlike many of his mates, he seemed comparatively at ease against Australia's rampaging pace attack and also had a century to his name in Perth. Given the number of starts he got, Bairstow would be disappointed at having under-achieved through the series. However, it was a tour that was only going to improve him mentally.

Bairstow found it hard to break into the XI as the wicket-keeper batsman in the shorter formats - courtesy Buttler's heroics. However, his imperious form during the 2016-17 coupled with Jason Roy's lean patch forced the selectors to pick Bairstow as the opener. It didn't take long for him to make a mark as he notched up two centuries in the home ODIs against West Indies in 2017.

In 2018, Bairstow became the first English batter to record three successive ODI tons. The later part of that year saw Bairstow lose his form. When he twisted his ankle while playing football in training during the away series against Sri Lanka, it almost seemed that he had gifted his spot in the playing XI away as three players (Bairstow, Alex Hales and Jason Roy) were competing for two spots. However, Alex Hales’s withdrawal from the World Cup squad in a way solved the team management’s problem as the opening spot was fixed.

Bairstow has been an integral member of the ‘New England’ team which not only entered the multi-nation competition as the ranked one side in the world but also as one of the favourites to win the tournament. He had a superb World Cup, scoring two hundreds and two fifties while playing all games for England. Jonny Bairstow was the second highest run getter for England in that historic WC winning campaign for England.

Post the 2019 World Cup, Bairstow’s white ball game took a dip, and it culminated in a disastrous 2021 T20I World Cup where he scored just 47 runs across six games. This led to Bairstow’s eventual axing from the white ball setup, with the selectors opting to go for more and more format specialist players. However, this proved to be a blessing for him and English cricket, as Bairstow came into his own as a Test batter. He was the only English player to score a century in a really forgettable Ashes Down Under, where England lost 4-0.

Bairstow followed that up with a century away to West Indies as well, where once again he was a shining light for his side in a forgettable tour. England’s dismal form as a team led to some changes in the coaching setup, as Trevos Bayliss was axed with Brendon McCullum replacing him. This proved to be another blessing for Jonny Bairstow, as McCullum came in and asked this England team to play free and without inhibitions. Jonny Bairstow was the first crown prince of this English Bazball revolution, as he completely obliterated a visiting New Zealand team. He scored a century in two out of the three Tests, fittingly claiming a Man of the Series accolade. Bairstow also scored a century in the rescheduled fifth Test against India, helping England draw the series 2-2.

Jonny Bairstow was looking like the glue around whom the English red ball team was being constructed, but a freak leg injury while golfing kept him sidelined for a long, long period.

IPL through the years
Jonny Bairstow registered for the IPL for the first time only in 2019, and was picked by Sunrisers Hyderabad. He formed a lethal combination there alongside David Warner, opening the batting. The duo both scored centuries in a game against RCB that season - first and only time in the IPL that two openers have scored tons. Bairstow averaged in excess of 55 and held a strike rate of over 150 in his first season.

The next season however there were depreciating returns from Bairstow as the IPL shifted to the UAE, as Bairstow’s strike rate dropped below 125 and his average dipped to 31.96. The next season, he started brilliantly for SRH- scoring 248 runs in seven matches before the IPL was called off, and then didn’t turn up for the UAE leg of the competition citing bubble fatigue. Bairstow was picked by Punjab Kings in the 2022 mega auction, and had a sketchy tournament as he was being batted all round the order. Bairstow was retained for the 2023 season but has been ruled out due to injury.