The knockout blow that 2015 Cricket World Cup gave to England's white-ball cricket, changed the complexion of their shorter formats side and the mindset. Under Trevor Bayliss and Paul Farbrace, England stocked their batting order with one aggressive batsman after another, who went hell for leather from the get-go.
Irrespective of the game situation, they wanted to play in that particular manner, with that particular mentality that only the restriction of overs would stop them. Since 2015, that England side has most times batted the oppositions out of the games, amassing 350-plus scores as regular as clockwork and as easy as walk in the park, won a World Cup, and almost won a T20 World Cup.
Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan and captain Eoin Morgan became the regulars. With Jos taking care of the wicket-keeping duties, another wicket-keeper batsman Jonathan Bairstow was on fringes of the team and was competing with him for the place.
So, to comeback into the England's 'most diffcult team to get in' he had to broke the door down by scoring runs.
Bairstow had a breakthrough 2016 in Test cricket scoring 1,470 runs in 29 innings at an average of 58.8. Although, his test career seems in jeopardy currently, after not being awarded the central test contract for the 2020-21 season, his white-ball cricket got a lease of life having made into the England's XI.
He batted at No 6 to start with but didn't get enough opportunities to show his capabilities and whenever he got the chance, he got only a few balls where he had to smash from ball one. Hales' inconsistency and his off-field controversies helped Bairstow get an opportunity at the top of the order and he formed a solid opening pair with Jason Roy and both of them just smashed everything.
Bairstow, since 2017, has scored 2749 runs in 58 games at an average of 60 in ODIs. Not just in 50-over, in T20Is too, he averages 38, just behind Virat Kohli's 44.
His consistent run-making ensured that he became a regular in England's white-ball side. Even though his batting position kept changing, his batting didn't and Friday's knock was a prime example of that.
Bairstow makes merry at No 4, his unbeaten 86 helps Eng lead 1-0 against SA
Faf du Plessis' 58 and contributions from Quinton de Kock, Rassie Van de Dussen and Heinrich Klassen helped South Africa reach 179, which in both captains' admission, was an above-par/good score on that sluggish surface.
England didn't get off to a great start as they lost Jason Roy in the first over itself to the spin of debutant George Linde. As Dawid Malan and Jos Buttler started rebuilding, both Buttler and Malan fell inside the powerplay as England were reduced to 34-3 in the 6th over.
Ben Stokes joined Bairstow, who came in at No 4 and kept milking the singles. But, someone had to take the charge as the run-rate was climbing towards 10. Bairstow took guard and went berserk against left-arm wrist spinner Tabraiz Shamsi. He hit 2 sixes in the 9th over of the innings, before being dropped by Faf du Plessis of all people in the same over.
After that he just opened up and didn't leave any south African bowler.
Particularly severe against Beuran Hendricks' left-arm medium pace, Bairstow kept hitting bowndaries at will and sixes whenever he wanted to and threw the pitch out of the equation completely. He remained unbeaten on 86 off 48 balls, and in the process reached his 6th T20I fifty.
England chased down 180 with four balls to spare owing to Bairstow's blitzkrieg and thereby taking a 1-0 lead against Sout Africa.
Not far behind Kohli, although someone else is giving Kohli a run-for-the-money
Apart from a certain player named Babar Azam, who is giving a tough fight averaging 49 in T20Is and 68 in ODIs to Virat Kohli, Jonny Bairstow has certainly been England's consistent batsman a little behind Kohli.
He is the only England batsman in the Top 10 in the ODI rankings.
Bairstow in the recent years, has become that versatile player in England's jigsaw puzzle that they have yearned for, for a long time and with his IPL heroics in the last two years, he has certainly made a mark in the white-ball formats especially.
