[1] Since the inception of the style until June 2023, England averaged a run rate of 4.65 per over, significantly higher than the next highest in Test match history.
A faster scoring rate has allowed the team to declare their innings earlier and seek a result where ordinarily a draw would occur.
The name "Bazball" was coined by ESPN Cricinfo UK editor Andrew Miller on an episode of the Switch Hit podcast.
McCullum himself has voiced concern that the term can't express the nuances of the England team's approach or his management style.
[9] With no dramatic change to the players selected, England "against all odds" experienced success: "their bowlers rose to the challenge, taking 20 wickets in six of the seven Test matches, while their batsmen scored at unprecedented pace.
One aspect of Bazball is batsmen taking the skills learned and honed playing one-day cricket and transposing them into the longer form, and traditionally slower, Test match game.
[18] Ali Martin in The Guardian described the Bazball philosophy as "play positive red-ball [Test] cricket; to soak up pressure when required but also be brave enough to put it back on opponents at the earliest opportunity; to make taking wickets the sole aim in the field; and to strive chiefly for victory across the five days without considering the draw".
They are: Stocks quoted veteran pace bowler Stuart Broad discussing the mental side of McCullum's approach when he said: "There's no doubt Baz has had an impact already.
"[27] England batsmen have also demonstrated innovation when facing Test match bowlers, such as Joe Root playing reverse-ramp shots against pace bowling, and batting left-handed.
[28] On 16 February 2023, fast scoring rates by the top order allowed England to declare their innings on the first day of a day/night Test match at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui on a tour of New Zealand, when the evening conditions were perceived to be a better time to be bowling rather than batting as a side.
"[35] Speaking after England chased a record run-chase in a Test in Nottingham in June 2022 against New Zealand at Trent Bridge, including a period of 102 runs in nine overs hit by Stokes and Jonny Bairstow, Stokes was quoted as saying "The message just was run into the fear of what the game was rather than stand still or back away from it...I'll say it quite simply: we were either winning this game or losing it.
[37] An aggressive, high-risk high-reward style was noted with England's leading all-time wicket taker James Anderson quoted as saying "We've got a captain and coach that don't want draws.
They played less defensively, leading to former Australian cricketer and now commentator Mark Waugh saying "Courageous, fearless positive mindset gets them a win in Rawalpindi on the most docile surface.
"[40] Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting discussed the change brought about to the English Test team commenting on how McCullum had managed to "change the attitude of some of the English players to not be scared about getting out and to be fully committed to thinking about scoring runs and when you get the ball in your hand to be as aggressive as you can and set nice and aggressive fields.
England off-spin bowler Jack Leach was quoted as saying "In teams I've played in, the way I've thought – a lot of the decisions are made around negativity...Stokes is going out the opposite way.
"[42][43] On the tour of Pakistan in late 2022 Stokes' use of "wacky" fielding positions and bowling changes was said to have helped his side achieve a series victory.
The "aggressive field settings and constant tinkering" led McCullum to say that Stokes "is determined not just to drive this team but cricket forward.
He seems to have taken captaincy to a new level...What we see on the field pulling the strings...he's constantly active, making plays and always thinking about wickets and he's so consistent with his message that he doesn't care about runs.
[45] During the English summer test matches of 2022 on occasion Stuart Broad would be padded up for the last few overs of the day in order that, if called upon, he could attempt a few late evening blows to accelerate the scoring and cheer the crowd.
[46] Broad told Sky Sports that it was in England's first innings against New Zealand on his home ground of Trent Bridge in 2022 that McCullum suggested it to him, somewhat unexpectedly, "I went to make a coffee, in my flip flops, and Baz came up and said, 'you are in next, get your pads on.
"[47] Broad, however, was never required in the role, and it was later on in the year that 18-year-old spin bowler Rehan Ahmed first got to be nighthawk, promoted to bat at number three in the Test match in Karachi against Pakistan on 19 December, 2022.
"[50] Changes in English domestic cricket came about in order to encourage an increased prevalence in the style of play closer to that sought by the England Test match team.
[52] In January 2023, England captain Ben Stokes, managing director Rob Key, and Brendon McCullum over Zoom, addressed a meeting of directors of cricket from the first-class counties to discuss the way they intend the England team to play and the subsequent qualities needed in future international players.
"[55] Revitalise was also a word used by former Australia captain Ricky Ponting when he told the ICC Review "So far it has been unbelievable, and it has actually almost reinvigorated Test match cricket again.
Former England opener Geoff Boycott was forthright and scathing in his assessment on the Daily Telegraph's Tuffers and Vaughany podcast, saying "If you think you are going to plunder the best bowlers in the world with a new conker when they are fresh then you are an idiot.
Critics argue that Bazball undermines the balance between attack and defence, making them vulnerable to losing matches they might otherwise have won through a more measured approach.