“I’m surprised it took us this long to play this way,” James Anderson says about “Bazball” before the Ashes 2023.

Even though “Bazball” was seen as one of the reasons why England lost to New Zealand in the second Test of the recently finished series, veteran English pacer James Anderson wants his teammates to keep up their newfound attacking spirit in the Ashes, which starts on June 16.

By winning 10 of their last 12 Test matches, the Ben Stokes-led team has notable established a new standard for the longest version of the game. They have played amazing cricket and won against teams like New Zealand, India, South Africa, and Pakistan. So, before the next game of The Ashes, Anderson seemed very sure of himself and said that he was surprised that it took England so long to figure this out.

Fox Sports quoted James Anderson as saying, “I’m surprised it took us so long to play this way. It just shows what can happen when you start pushing the limits a little, when you start pushing the ceiling of what you can do.”

James Anderson talks about their recent loss to New Zealand.

In the fourth innings of the second Test against New Zealand, England was trying to reach a target of 258 runs. They played well, but they couldn’t keep their wickets because they kept falling. Former captain Joe Root hit 95 runs off 113 balls and got England close to winning, but in the end, they lost by only one run.

James Anderson said that the loss still hurt him when he talked about the game, but that it wouldn’t change how they played Test cricket.

“I’m not saying that the result didn’t hurt as much, because it did. I was still angry, but we were glad to have been a part of such a great game. Everyone in the stadium saw a great game of cricket, especially at the end, which we all enjoyed. So the next challenge will be the Ashes, especially for the guys who only play Test cricket because there’s nothing bigger for us.

“Can we still play with that mindset and that freedom? Can we still put ourselves in danger? Can we choose the options that might make us lose the game but give us a chance to win? I believe so. I know Ben and Brendon will, too. “I think we’ll be fine as long as the other people in the area keep buying in,” the 40-year-old said.