‘Cricket is a bit behind’: Buttler on using walkie-talkie
Senior batter Jos Buttler said cricket is relatively behind other sports in relaying messages to on-field players, after head coach Brendon McCullum was seen communicating with England captain Harry Brook through a walkie-talking during drinks break in their T20 World Cup clash against Nepal.
But in some sports like Formula 1, Race Engineers direct drivers in real-time via radio, covering strategy, engine settings, tire management, and safety info. In football, managers are allowed to communicate with players from the sidelines. “I think so, there’s (been) walkie-talkies for a while to be fair.
But then the communication from top to bottom has always been really good in the group,” Buttler told reporters when asked if the motive behind using walkie-talkie was way for McCullum to have a more hands-on approach.
“Baz can sit with his feet up and his sunglasses on and look very relaxed, but he’s as sharp a coach as I’ve ever worked with. He doesn’t miss a beat,” Buttler said. “I think also for cricket in general, actually, coaches are getting more involved in real-time in cricket, I’ve played in the IPL, at Gujarat (Titans), Ashish Nehra is very active on the boundary rope.
“But it seems like cricket is a kind of sport where we are still a bit behind, maybe in that area where you look at other sports, the managers and coaches, and you think of rugby, running messages. So, maybe that will come more and more into cricket.” After the game on Sunday, McCullum’s approach was described by England player Will Jacks as a “simple and effective way to pass on information” to the captain or batters in the middle.
The former England captain Buttler said a close finish against Nepal was another indication of the fact that T20 matches can get tighter than expected. “In the T20 World Cups, (or) T20 cricket, generally the game is so close, one or two players can win games for their side on the day. Ultimately, we found a way to win, which is the most important thing,” he said.
