RIP Bazball? Australian Media Declares England’s Aggressive Approach Crushed in Perth Ashes

England’s ultra-aggressive Test cricket style, ‘Bazball’, has come under severe scrutiny after the tourists suffered a crushing eight-wicket defeat in the first Ashes Test at Perth, which concluded inside just two days. The result has prompted Australian media to declare the approach effectively “dead.”

Australian newspapers and commentators mocked the adventurous style championed by Captain Ben Stokes and Coach Brendon McCullum, suggesting it has struggled in its first major overseas challenge. The Australian newspaper went to the extreme of running a fake obituary for the style, echoing a historic Ashes tradition. The mock tribute read:

“In Affectionate Remembrance of Bazball, which died at the Perth Stadium on 22nd November 2025, deeply lamented by a circle of sorrowing friends and acquaintances and anyone who had tickets for day three. RIP NB – The body will be cremated and the ashes put on the first flight to Heathrow.”

The West Australian newspaper lampooned the tourists with the headline “England’s Daddy,” a pointed reference to previous English media jibes at the Australian team. Meanwhile, The Advertiser temporarily renamed its masthead “The Travertiser” in celebration of Australian batsman Travis Head, whose blistering century was viewed as a triumph over Bazball’s high-risk strategy.

The Australian backlash signals serious doubts about the effectiveness of England’s famed Bazball approach on faster, bouncier Australian pitches, despite its previous successes at home. Critics have also slammed England’s “reckless” collapses, intensifying the scrutiny on the team’s aggressive style.