Ashes spot could yield elusive big score for Bairstow

JONNY BAIRSTOW is confident he can end his wait for a Test match century as he aims to cement his place in the England side.

The Yorkshire star, who hopes to be named in the Ashes squad announced at midday today, is seeking a breakthrough hundred at international level.

Bairstow is drawing on the positive memory of how he flourished after ending a frustrating wait for his maiden first-class century for Yorkshire.

He passed fifty 17 times in 34 first-class games before his first hundred against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge in 2011, since when he has scored another seven in first-class cricket.

“It took me a while to get to my first big one for Yorkshire and then a few came along, so it’s not something I’m worried about,” said Bairstow, who has passed fifty four times in 20 Test innings with a top score of 95 against South Africa at Lord’s last year.

“I guess a big score is what everyone needs when they first come into the team and you can kind of kick on from there.

“It would have been nice to have gone on and got a big one already, but that’s only around the corner. I’ve just got to be consistent in spending time at the crease, keep working hard and take it from there.”

Bairstow, who turns 24 on Thursday, is level-headed about his England situation.

He is taking nothing for granted as he looks to nail down a regular place and has reacted well to being left out of the fifth and final Ashes Test, making important contributions at county level.

“I was obviously disappointed to be left out of that game but to come back and score some runs for Yorkshire was pleasing,” he said. “Now we’ve got another Ashes series coming up and I’d obviously be delighted to go on that trip.

“It would be fantastic if I’m in the squad, so fingers crossed that that will happen. But it’s out of my hands and all I can do is wait and see if I get the call.”

Bairstow, who has hit 544 runs in 12 Tests at 30.22, played in the opening four games of this year’s Ashes.

Although he did not get the big score he was looking for, he played his part in the 3-0 success, making consistent contributions throughout.

“I was pretty pleased with my performances on the whole,” he said. “Obviously everyone wants to score a few more runs, but that’s only natural.

“To be part of an Ashes-winning side was very special and something I’ll look back on with extremely fond memories in years to come.

“With that experience behind me, hopefully I can take that forward and build on it now.”

Although England’s win was ultimately emphatic, Bairstow felt Australia scrapped hard throughout the series. He is anticipating a much sterner battle when the re-match starts in Brisbane on November 21.

“We will see a stronger challenge from them this winter, without a doubt,” he said. “The series is in their own backyard and it’s going to be tough.

“It’s international cricket, England versus Australia, so it’s never going to be easy, whatever the situation.

“We’re under no illusions because the series down there will be very hard. To be honest, the series we just had was tough – blooming tough. If a session here or a session there had gone the other way, it could have been a completely different story.

“They had us under the pump at Old Trafford, for example, and then it rained.

“It could have been different and we were just very happy to come out on top.”

The series might have played out differently had Australia won the opening Test at Trent Bridge.

Instead they lost it by 14 runs as Bairstow and his colleagues held their nerve.

“The Test at Trent Bridge was epic,” said Bairstow. “It doesn’t get much better than that.

“It was a nerve-wracking game, but that’s what you prepare yourself for and you’ve got to enjoy games like that.

“They’re the ones, 10 years down the line, when you think ‘how good was that?’, and you could feel the tension around the ground.”

Due to his involvement at international level, Bairstow has played only seven Championship matches this year.

But he has played an important part, averaging over 40 with the bat and turning in some typically impressive performances behind the stumps as Yorkshire so nearly won the title.

“We’ve had a great season and you’ve got to give credit to Durham for winning the Championship,” he said. “They’re playing an unbelievable brand of cricket at the moment and to have won 10 Championship games so far is a phenomenal effort.

“It might have been different if we’d got a draw against them at Scarborough, who knows?

“But even if we had drawn at Scarborough, they had a game in hand on us, and you’ve got to take your hat off to them and the way that they’ve played.”

Bairstow is one of a number of talented young players at Yorkshire as the club strive to build a squad that can continue to challenge for honours in the years to come.

He now believes they can continue to go from strength to strength.

“We’re a squad that is definitely going places,” he said. “You look at the squad and there’s only Siddy (Ryan Sidebottom) who’s pushing on a bit, and he’s still going and has just signed an extension to his contract.

“You look at Siddy’s record in four-day cricket this year and it’s been ridiculously good.

“The signings that we’ve made in the off-season have also been brilliant and it’s been a fantastic effort by all the lads.”