Jos Buttler
Joseph Charles "Jos" Buttler (born 8 September 1990) is an English professionalcricketer who plays for England cricket teamand a former limited over captain for England. He plays Lancashire County Cricket Club in domestic county arena. He is a right-handedbatsman who also plays as a wicket-keeperand is the current vice-captain of the English limited-over teams. He initially played forSomerset and has played Twenty20 franchise cricket in the Australian Big Bash League, theIndian Premier League and the Bangladesh Premier League.
Buttler enjoyed a prolific cricket record while at school, sharing a record-breaking openingpartnership while at King's College, Taunton in 2008, and the following season his school lost only one of seventeen matches under his captaincy, and he was named 2010 Young Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year. He made his Somerset first-team debut in 2009 after having played age-group cricket for the county. His performances led him to be selected to play for England at Under-19 level before he made his senior England debut in 2011 and his Test debut in 2014.
Domestic career
Early life and career
Buttler played extensively for Somerset's youth teams, appearing at Under-13, Under-15 and Under-17 level.[1] He made his senior club cricket debut for Cheddar before moving to Glastonbury in the 2006 season, aged just 15, taking three catches and fifteen runs aswicket-keeper.[2] Later in the same season, he made his first appearance for Somerset Second XI, scoring 71 in the second-innings, and taking six catches in the three-day match against Nottinghamshire Second XI.[3] Playing for King's College, Taunton, he finished the 2006 season with the school's leading batting average, scoring 447 runs at an average of 49.66.[4] The following season he played regularly for Glastonbury in the West of England Premier League, and for Somerset Under-17s, for whom he scored two centuries; an unbeaten 119 during a two-day match against Surrey Under-17s,[5] and 110 againstSussex Under-17s.[6] He once again led the batting averages for King's College, with his 358 runs coming at 51.14.[7]
Buttler keeping wicket for Somerset
The highlight of his school career came in April 2008, when he scored 227 not out during a record-breaking opening stand in a 50-over national schools game, adding 340 with Alex Barrow.[8] He captained King's during the 2008 season, and improved on his batting totals from the previous two years, scoring 851 runs, over 250 more than any other member of the team.[9] His batting average of 94.55 was the sixth highest amongst all school's batsmen reported in Wisden, while his high-score of 227* was the highest score they recorded.[10]During that 2008 season, Buttler also played for Somerset Second XI. With captain Carl Gazzard keeping wicket in the majority of these matches, Buttler played purely as a batsman, although in his final match of the season for the team, he kept wicket and took six catches in the first-innings against Worcestershire Second XI.[11] In the previous match, against Hampshire Second XI, Buttler had made 140 batting from number four.[12]
He made his first-class debut for Somerset in September 2009, replacing the injured Justin Langer for the County Championship match against Lancashire, scoring 30 in his only innings.[13] He retained his place in the team for the following Pro40 match againstHampshire, making his List A debut, although he was not required to bat.[14] Selected as part of the Somerset squad for the 2009 Champions League Twenty20, Buttler made his debut in the 20-over format of the game in Somerset's final match of the league stage, remaining six not out at the close of the innings.[15] Buttler again captained King's in 2009, and in the seventeen matches under his leadership they lost only once, and also won the Western School Twenty20 competition.[16]Coupled with his 554 runs for the school at an average of 61.55, and his performances for Somerset, he was named 2010 Young WisdenSchools Cricketer of the Year.[17]
First-team opportunity
When Craig Kieswetter was called up into theEngland one-day side in 2010, Buttler was given the chance of a prolonged run in Somerset's first team. Brian Rose, Somerset's Director of Cricket, chose not to bring in an experienced keeper to deputise, explaining that Kieswetter had been in a similar position three years earlier, and that he had good reports of Buttler's ability.[18] In his first match of the 2010 season, Buttler remained 22 not out at the close of Somerset's innings, posting his first runs in List A cricket, and he followed this up with two catches to help Somerset beat Glamorgan in their opening Clydesdale Bank 40 fixture.[19]
He made his maiden first-class century in his fourth County Championship match, scoring 144 runs in an innings characterised by "dogged determination and [a] decent range of shots".[20] In his next match, he scored his debut List A half-century against Sussex. Buttler joined James Hildreth at the crease with Somerset at 109/4, requiring 183 more runs to win off 129 balls. The pair put on apartnership of 158 runs "to turn the game on its head", with Buttler making 69 in 53 balls.[21] In doing so, they set a new record partnership for the fifth-wicket against Sussex.[22] His continued his good batting form, which also saw him make scores of 52 and 31* in a County Championship match against Yorkshire,[23] saw him retain his place in the Somerset team upon Kieswetter's return.[24]
Buttler was named man of the match in Somerset's 2010 Friends Provident T20 semi-final victory over Nottinghamshire at the Rose Bowl, reaching a "breathtaking" half-century from 21 balls to score an unbeaten 55 runs in a partnership of 75 with Kieron Pollard.[25][26]His aggressive batting won him many plaudits and helped Somerset reach the final of the2010 Clydesdale Bank 40 as well as the Twenty20 cup.[27]
His good form with the bat continued into 2011[28][29] as Somerset again reached the final of both the Twenty20 and 40 overcompetitions, with Buttler top-scoring with a "mature" 86 runs from 72 balls in the 40 over final.[30][31] In both 2010 and 2011 he was awarded the NBC Denis Compton Award as Somerset's most promising young player[32]and made his full England debut at the end of the season.[33]
The 2012 season proved similarly productive for Buttler, and featured a "brilliant" half-century scored from 36 balls againstNorthants in the domestic 40 over competition,[34] although increasing international call-ups limited his appearances for Somerset and Kieswetter remained the first-choice wicket-keeper for Somerset.[35]The second County Championship match of the 2013 season saw Buttler score 94 runs playing as a specialist batsman and an injury to Kieswetter at the end of April provided an opportunity for Buttler to claim his place as 'keeper in the side.[36][37] Somerset started the County Championship season poorly, but Buttler was praised for adopting a mature approach to his batting, averaging over 40 with the bat in the Championship at the midpoint of the season and enjoying his most productive first-class season to date.[38][39]After missing county matches again due to international call-ups, Buttler saw Kieswetter return as wicket-keeper in some T20 county matches and began to publicly question his future at the club if he was not to keep wicket regularly for the one-day side. He delayed signing a new contract he had been offered, concerned that by not being the main wicket-keeper for Somerset that he would put his international wicket-keeping place in jeopardy, despite a strong emotional attachment to the county.[40][41] Despite Somerset's desire to keep Buttler at the club, they were unable to reach an agreement which satisfied Buttler's desire to keep wicket, and at the end of the season he announced that he would be leaving Somerset with the aim of securing his international place and breaking into the England Test side.[42][43]
Move to Lancashire
At the end of September 2013 Lancashire County Cricket Club announced they had signed Buttler at the end of September 2013.[43][44] He scored 42 in his first Championship appearance for the county before compiling a "game-changing" innings of 72 on a difficult pitch at Northamptonwhich showcased Buttler's first-class batting potential and contributed to a record seventh wicket partnership for Lancashire againstNorthants.[39][45][46] He scored his first century for Lancashire, his fourth in first-class cricket, in June against Durham[47] before equalling the record for the quickest fifty scored in Twenty20 cricket, hitting a half-century in 22 balls against Northants on his way to 58 not out in the 2014 NatWest t20 Blast.[48]Lancashire reached the final of the T20 competition, losing to Warwickshire.[49] He played 10 first-class matches for Lancashire during the season and was called into the England Test side as wicket-keeper July, replacing the injured Matt Prior, although doubts remained about the quality of his wicket-keeping.[50][51]
He extended his stay with Lancashire County Cricket Club announcing a new three-year contract on 27 May 2016[52]
International career
Buttler's first taste of international cricket came in July 2008, when he represented England Under-17s in two warm-up matches against New Zealand Under-19s. Batting at number five, he scored a rapid 77 not out in the 50-over contest, hitting 11 fours and 2 sixes during the 49 deliveries he faced.[53] He also played in the two-day match between the two teams, scoring 45 in the first-innings as the match was drawn.[54] In 2009, Buttler played four matches for England Under-18s, two each against Scotland A and Scotland Development XI. He scored 103 not out in the first of these matches,[55] and made starts in each of the following matches, reaching double figures on each occasion, but not scoring higher than 28.[56][57][58] Two months later, Buttler made his England Under-19debut, appearing in the first Twenty20 againstBangladesh Under-19s. Playing as a specialist batsman, he scored 33 runs off 17 balls as England won by five wickets.[59]
During the 2009–10 English winter, Buttler toured with the England Under-19 team. He joined up with the squad in Bangladesh following Somerset's elimination from the Champions League Twenty20 for the seven-match youth ODI series, playing again as a specialist batsman.[60] He failed to make a significant impact until the final match when he top-scored for England with 42 runs.[61] He remained with the team for the Under-19 World Cup, where he played all but one of England's six matches, keeping wicket in three of them. He scored 91 runs in three innings, with a top-score of 78 against India in the fifth-place play-off semi-final. His batting average of 30.33 ranked him fifth on the England team.[62]
Buttler was called into the senior Englandsquad for the Twenty20 International against the touring Indian team in September 2011.[33]He made his debut for the side in the match as a specialist batsman before going on to play against the touring West Indies side later the same season.[63][64] During the winter of 2011 he was part of the England performance programme for batting and wicket-keeping in India,[65] and played in the England Lions tours of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka,[66] scoring his maiden limited-overs century against Sri Lanka A in January 2012.[67] He played a T20 International against India in Kolkata and then toured with England to play Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates in early 2012, making his One Day International debut, although he was out second ball without scoring.[68]
Buttler continued to play regular T20 cricket for England throughout 2012. Against South Africa at Edgbaston he joined Somerset teammate Craig Kieswetter with England on 64/3 with only 16 balls remaining. The pair gave "a brutal display of power hitting", raising the final score to 118/5, with Buttler hitting 30 runs from one 32-run over from Wayne Parnell, the second most productive over in International Twenty20 at the time.[69] The innings established Buttler as a key part of the England one-day side: he had made 10 appearances before the match but reached double figures only once in his six innings, and his performance made him "one of the most talked-about players" in the England side.[70] Buttler spoke about how the innings made him feel "calmer, more myself, more relaxed"[70] and he received an ECBincremental contract later in the same month.[71] He was selected in the England squad for the 2012 ICC World Twenty20, playing in all five of England's matches in the competition, although he scored only 40 runs in his five innings.[72]
He replaced a rested Jonathan Trott in theEngland ODI squad in India in early 2013[68]and replaced Craig Kieswetter as the first-choice wicket-keeper halfway through the ODI series.[73] This allowed Buttler to break into the England ODI side on a consistent basis, playing regularly throughout the year in both ODI and T20 formats and increasingly as a wicket-keeper, despite some reservations about the quality of his work behind the stumps.[74][75] He scored his maiden half-century for England in a T20 warm-up match at the start of England's tour of New Zealandfollowed by his first T20I half-century in the second match of the T20I series.[76][77] After being confirmed as England's first choice limited-overs wicket-keeper[35] he played in every England match in the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy in England. Buttler played again in the 2014 ICC World Twenty20 in India in March and played regular one-day cricket again throughout the year. He scored his maiden One-Day International century against Sri Lanka at Lord's in May, scoring 121 in 61 balls with nine fours and four sixes, the fastest century by any England batsman.[78]After first choice wicket-keeper Matt Priorstood down after injury on the 22 July 2014, Buttler was called up for the England squad for the third Test against India. He made 85 runs from 83 balls in his first Test innings. He played in the final three Tests of the series before reverting to one-day duty, touring Sri Lanka at the end of the year.
After playing for England in the Tri-series in Australia at the start of the year, Buttler was once again involved with England at an international tournament, playing in the 2015 Cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. Later in the English winter he was called back into the Test side, as wicket-keeper, during the tour of the West Indies. He continued in the role throughout the English summer, playing both Tests against New Zealand and all five Ashes Tests against Australia. Buttler's batting during the Ashes series was criticised by Boycott, saying "Jos Buttler is like a rabbit caught in the headlights of Ashes cricket. A seven-year-old schoolboy would have played better. He hasn't made a run all series. He hasn't shown any application whatsoever. It looks to me like his mind and confidence is shot for Test cricket – it's pathetic."[79] He continued to play one-day cricket alongside his Test role, making his highest ODI score of 129 from 77 balls against New Zealand.
After playing in the first two Tests against Pakistan during October, Buttler was dropped for the third Test, replaced as wicket-keeper by Jonny Bairstow, and was not selected for any of the Test matches during England's tour of South Africa, although he did play again in the one-day fixtures during the tour. Buttler again played for England in the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 and was a regular fixture in the limited-overs squad throughout the year. He scored an unbeaten 90 runs against Pakistan as part of an England record score of 444/3, the fastest half-century by an Englishman.[80]
Buttler captained the England side in the ODI series against Bangladesh in October but was again reserve wicket-keeper for the Test series. Buttler returned to the England Test side for the third Test against India in November, playing in the final three Tests of the series. He was named in the ICC World ODI XI in 2016 and continued as a regular in the limited-overs side throughout 2016 and 2017, playing again for England in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, but was unable to break back into the Test side and was not selected for the 2017–18 Ashes series in Australia.
Franchise T20 cricket
Buttler has become increasingly involved in playing in franchise Twenty20 cricket around the world. His first experience of franchise cricket came in 2013/14 when he played forMelbourne Renegades in the 2013–14 Big Bash League season in Australia. This coincided with the buildup to the England one-day side playing in Australia at the beginning of 2014 and followed him having been with the England development squad in Perth, Western Australia for a month prior to the start of the competition.[81] Buttler was initially only expected to play for Melbourne in their first two matches of the competition but this was extended due to the late arrival of Pakistani allrounder Mohammad Hafeez who had been called into the Pakistan Test squad. After having scored a "stunning" 61 runs against Brisbane Heat in his third match,[82]Buttler eventually played in five Big Bash matches for Melbourne before leaving to join the England squad.[83][84]
He played for Mumbai Indians in the 2016 and 2017 Indian Premier League seasons.
Expecting to be left out of the 2017–18 Ashes series in Australia, Buttler signed a two-year contract in August 2017 with Comilla Victorians to appear in Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).[85][86] He made his BPL debut in November 2017, scoring 48 runs from 42 balls in his second match for Comilla and recorded his first BPL half-century in his third match.[87][88]
Personality and style
"[Jos Buttler] is an extravagantly talented batsman with the power and range of strokes to damage any bowling attack. There may be moments, against the very best bowling, when his improvisation gets him into trouble but, so capable of unorthodoxy is he, that even the best could be discombobulated.
“
”
George Dobell, June 2013[38]
A tall and strongly-built cricketer, Buttler has an upright stance in the crease.[90] During his maiden first-class century against Hampshire in 2010, he "hit the ball hard and straight", "moving his feet decisively, playing with his bat close to his body and selecting the right balls to attack".[91] Buttler was praised for "remaining cool and composed at the crease" and for his "dogged determination and decent range of shots" during the innings.[20] His Somerset captain Marcus Trescothicksuggested that Buttler could challenge teammate Craig Kieswetter's place in the England team.[92] His temperament in the longer forms of the game has been questioned at times as his career has developed. In 2013 he was out for 94 runs for Somerset attempting to reach his century by hitting a six and George Dobell, writing forESPNcricinfo, questioned "his ability to defend and deny [bowlers]".[36] Dobell praised the first half of Buttler's innings, which ensured a draw for Somerset, saying that "it showed a young man responding to his team's needs with a restrained, mature performance that exhibited a decent defence and an ability to leave and play straight" and that he had "produced some of those trademark straight drives and several powerful pulls" but felt that "it is the strokes he does not play that are as relevant as those he does".[36]
In one day cricket, Buttler quickly established a reputation as an aggressive batsman who could take control of a game at the end of an innings.[93][94][74] By the end of his first full-season he was producing "innings of huge promise"[95] which were being described as "breathtaking"[25] and "swashbuckling"[95] and displaying "an array of explosive and innovative shots".[96] Still a teenager, his displays in both 40 over and 20 over cricket in 2010 won him plaudits, including a description as a "supremely talented youngster" who batted with a "blend of power and sweet timing".[27] His range of shots, including effective use of 'scoop' and 'ramp' shots over the wicket-keeper to fine leg and variations such as reverse and swivel scoop shots,[97] mean that his game has been considered subtle rather than overly aggressive[98][99] and his "stunning strokes",[100] clean striking and "crispness when hitting" the ball along with his "audacity and adventure" have all been cited as making him an "exciting" batsman.[101]
Despite not always being his county's first-choice wicket-keeper and reservations about the quality of his work behind the stumps, Buttler has frequently been used in that role by the England team since the beginning of 2013, especially in one-day cricket. He was installed in the wicket-keeper role ahead of the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy after Craig Kieswetter faltered in terms of his batting – Buttler's one-day batting, his potential and his ability to combine power with improvisation being seen as more important than any failings as a wicket-keeper[74] – despite, by his own admission, his "keeping [being] a work in progress".[73] His wicket-keeping was "seen by some as having more potential" than his main rival for the job Jonny Bairstow and England wicket-keeper coach Bruce French spoke of his "natural hands" behind the stumps.[75]
Following Kieswetter's and Matt Prior'sinternational retirements in 2015, Buttler became England's first-choice wicket-keeper in all formats. Whether he should play as a wicket-keeper or specialist batsman was questioned in middle of the 2015 season[102]and Bairstow replaced him for the third ODIduring Australia's 2015 tour due to Buttler's poor form with the bat throughout the Australian series.[103] Bairstow eventually became the outright wicket-keeper for Tests in December 2015 for the series against South Africa,[104] and Buttler was dropped from the Test side during 2016, whilst continuing to be the first-choice ODI and T20 wicket-keeper.[105]
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