Despite winning the World Cup in 2019, Buttler says England are not approaching this year's tournament with any arrogance. Photo: GETTY IMAGES/Gareth Copley
In training ahead of the first ODI match against New Zealand last month, Jos Buttler was reminded that his squad for the World Cup, which starts on Thursday, was making some progress.
Buttler's team landed in Guwahati last week after a 38-hour journey. They know that after more than eight years of evolution without any change, this tournament represents something of a last dance. There may be a T20 World Cup next year, but not everyone is participating. In the increasingly marginalized ODI format, there will be a significant changing of the guard after this tournament.
Eight of the 15 were victorious at the 2019 World Cup, and seven played in the final. David Willey had some bad luck when choosing this team, but this time he was successful. There has been another minor generational change over the past month, with Jason Roy replaced by Harry Brooke in what Buttler described as an «incredibly difficult conversation». Even with this change, there are twice as many players over 33 (eight) as under 30 (four).
“These [field exercises] show a little bit of where we are,” Buttler says. “I don’t think we need to put any extra pressure on ourselves as a team: this will be the last time we play together or anything like that. We need to enjoy it, and if it turns out that way, then so be it. We'll make sure we have a good time, play our style, aggressive and positive, and stay true to what we've done for a long period of time. I don't know anyone's intentions after this World Cup, but if we don't play together much after this, that's it.»
«India are the clear favourites.»
Buttler was part of the English team. trust since the white-ball revolution in 2015, and last year he succeeded Eoin Morgan in both formats, winning the T20 World Cup, his first tournament under his leadership. His players have seen it all before, including a super over in a drawn final. As a result, their class and influence means that anything less than a semi-final appearance will be a disappointment.
“There is no substitute for experience,” he says. “Until you're in those moments as an individual and a team, you don't know how to deal with it. As individuals, we have been in such situations, be it in the two World Cups with England, in the IPL, in the Hundred, in Test cricket. Over the years, the guys have faced such difficult moments and high-pressure situations.”
However, Buttler sees India as strong favourites. He is also right, not only because India is such a force in white-ball cricket, but also because the hosts (India in 2011, Australia in 2015, who defeated their hosts New Zealand in the final and England in 2019) won the last three ODI World Cups. The tournament will last over six weeks, and the finalists will play 11 games. The tournament is a marathon in which knowing the conditions certainly helps.
“In 2019 we had a very steady four years of growth leading up to the home World Cup, which came with its own challenges that we accepted.” — he says. “Four years later the schedule has changed due to Covid and we are off to a very different start. I think we feel very settled. We have so much experience in the group and perhaps less pressure. The way we want to play has been ingrained over a long period of time.
“Going into the World Cup in India, I think India are the clear favorites if you have to choose. We are performing as a good team aiming to win the World Cup and we have no thoughts of becoming the defending champions. This is a new tournament, and we will try to go through it game by game and go to the end. We know we have a good team that has a chance.»
Ben Stokes and India's Shardul Thakur looked like this in a friendly on Saturday when England were scheduled to play a warm-up game against the World Cup host nation but the match was called off. Photo: Getty IMages/Pankaj Nangia 'England players in demand' Buttler believes Roy's replacement with Brook is a sign of England's strength and a symbol of how far the team has come since 2015, when England failed to reach the quarter-finals.
“We’re fortunate to have a lot of depth and talent,” he says. “Yes, it means talking tough, but white-ball cricket has had a fantastic journey in this country. You look at the franchise competitions and the drafts and auctions are full of sought-after English players. He continues to build that depth. It's been eight and a half years since everything changed, and that's a long time for players to develop and succeed. We see it now.”
During England's tenure, the ODI format has fallen by the wayside, partly due to Covid-19 and partly due to the rise in popularity of T20. England played 88 ODI matches between the 2015 and 2019 World Cups, but only 42 this time, many of them with the second team. Buttler played 76 matches last cycle, but just 27 this cycle, and is now largely on a T20 diet, so admits it will take some time to get back into the rhythms of the format.
The long-term future of ODI is under threat. Two-sided series are irrelevant and broadcasters don't want to pay for most of them. There will be a World Cup in southern Africa in 2027, but beyond that, who knows if there will be any appetite there? Buttler hopes the format will continue.
“I certainly hope so,” he says. “I think it's a really good format of the game. Over 50 overs, there is a balance between bat and ball that sometimes doesn't exist in T20. Being a middle-order batter gives you enough time to make an impact in the game and have a really good bat, which T20 doesn't give you.
“I just think it's hard to find full relevance in bilateral series, given the schedules and not always being able to field your best team in them. It has come to the point where it is all about world events and it is the same in T20. They are held every two years in each format, following this 50-over World Cup with the Champions Cup being awarded 18 months later. It moves forward very quickly and you get closer to the next one. There is no doubt that the world of the T20 franchise gives players more opportunities, dominates the calendar more and challenges bilateral series more.
“It will be interesting to see what happens after this World Cup, when all the countries for the set players, whether the appetite will remain under this, time will tell. It's an exciting format and we only need to look back at this 2019 tournament, and especially the final, to see what a great format it is.”
Battler is offering three series to attract players. , which were common a generation ago but are rare now. “I’m not sure it’s feasible,” he says, “but it would be fun to be a part of and it would add context. We need to achieve relevance to make sure the best players want to play.»
For Buttler's team, this World Cup is something of a last hurray, and perhaps the same can be said for the format, in which they have produced so brilliantly over the last eight years.
Jos Buttler has been supporting Castore, the official kit supplier of the England cricket team.
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