England will look to Jos Buttler to deliver in the second T20 World Cup semifinal against India at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday, despite his recent struggles in ICC tournaments. The 35-year-old opener has not found consistent form in major events in recent years, but the team continues to back his experience.
Buttler had a difficult ODI World Cup in India in 2023 and has not made a significant impact so far in the ongoing T20 World Cup. This comes in a country where he has scored heavily in the IPL, including the 2025 season. In his last four ICC events — the 2023 ODI World Cup, the 2024 T20 World Cup, the Champions Trophy last year, and the current T20 World Cup — he has managed only one score of fifty or more.
The slower pitches in this tournament, particularly in Sri Lanka, have not suited his approach.
Two days before the semifinal in Mumbai, Buttler trained for about an hour in the nets, focusing on facing spin. Adil Rashid, Will Jacks and Liam Dawson bowled to him as he worked on his options. He practised slog sweeps against Rashid, hit straight against left-arm spinner Dawson and targeted the cow corner region when Jacks bowled.
He later faced throwdowns on the other side of the main square.
Before the session, all-rounder Sam Curran expressed confidence in Buttler.
“Jos is someone I’m pretty close to. He obviously wants more runs. But I certainly would rather have Jos Buttler in my team than coming up against him on Thursday night. I think he’s such a quality player. He’s done so well for us over many, many years.
“And he’s done well on this ground many, many times as well. So hopefully Thursday night is his night. But if it’s not, there’s no question he’s one of the best in the world.
“So him and Salty (Phil), such a dangerous opening partnership. And I guess we hope Thursday night they can get us off to a really good start There’s no doubt that he’ll come good and we’re not worried about him at all,” added Curran.
England captain Harry Brook had also spoken in support of Buttler after the match against New Zealand in Colombo.
“There’s been a lot said about Jos. I said the other day that he’s played 150 (154) games for England (in T20Is) and people probably need to take a little step back from that. He’s probably the best white-ball player to have ever played the game.
“He’s in a little bit of a rut now, but I think that’s an exciting thing for everybody in the world to know what he could produce in the next couple of games,” Brook had said.
For now, England remain firm in their backing of their senior batter ahead of the semifinal.
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