Jonny Bairstow’s reaction unmissable as Dharamsala crowd sledges him with ‘Bazball gets battered’ singalong

Jonny Bairstow was involved in a verbal exchange with the opponents twice during the fifth and final Test match between India and England at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala. One as with Shubman Gill during England's second innings, which went viral on social media, the other, perhaps the one that went unnoticed, involved the Dharamsala crowd, during India's first innings.

England were expected to be more at home in Dharamsala, and perhaps they had fancied their chance at a consolation win in the fifth Test after conceding the series in Ranchi. However, India captain Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill's stunning centuries, along with fifties from Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan and Devdutt Padikkal helped the home team build a first-innings lead of 259 runs.

Ravichandran Ashwin, playing his 100th Test for India, then picked five wickets while Kuldeep Yadav, who had a fifer in the first innings, snared two more, as England were folded for just 195 runs on Day 3 of the match. India won by an innings and 64 runs in the final Test to clinch the series 4-1.

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Amid the thrashing that England received in Dharamsala, the crowd looked to get into Bairstow's mind when he was fielding in the deep, as they chanted: "Bazball gets battered everywhere they go." The England batter, who was also playing his 100th Test, initially chose not to react, but later was seen replying back to the spectators with a smile.

This was the first time England lost a series in the Bazball era and the first time they lost four Test matches in a row under the captaincy of Ben Stokes.

Despite the heavy defeat, that kept them at No. 8 spot in the WTC points table, further dampening their chances of a comeback in the tournament, Stokes told critics to write him and his team off at their peril.

“It’s making sure we are staying true to ourselves as players and as a team. It’s knowing that sometimes taking risks brings your downfall, but when there’s a reason behind taking these risks that don’t quite work out, that is fine,” he said in the post-match presser.

“It is a tough game, cricket, and it can eat you up, but this tour in particular, there is always one that can lead you astray or make you a better player. I have done a lot of India tours now. I am obviously disappointed with my performance for the team, but write this team off, write me off at your own peril…”