Skipper Brook backs powerhouse Buttler to flourish in business end
Jos Buttler may still be searching for form, but it is not a concern for England skipper Harry Brook, who described him as a “powerhouse” and backed the former captain to finish with a flourish in the business end of the T20 World Cup. The 2022 T20 World Cup-winning captain’s lean run continued after he was dismissed for 7 -- his third single-digit score of the tournament -- against Sri Lanka in their Super 8s clash here on Sunday.
Buttler’s highest score so far is 26 against Nepal, and the former captain has not registered a fifty since his 83 against South Africa in September last year. “Not concerned, he’s a powerhouse, arguably our best white-ball player ever, lacking a bit of confidence at the moment, but I’d rather see him start like this and finish with a flourish,” Brook said at the presentation after England secured a 51-run win over Sri Lanka.
The tournament co-hosts restricted England to an underwhelming 146/9 but then succumbed to 95, their lowest total of the tournament. For Brook, who turned 27, it was a perfect birthday gift. “Beautiful birthday present, an awesome effort to get over the line and bowl them out for 100 (95).” England’s familiarity with conditions also helped, as they have played their build-up series in Sri Lanka before the T20 World Cup, sweeping the T20Is 3-0 and winning the ODIs 2-1.
“We’ve played a lot here, and we knew that (spin) would play a part. He (Will Jacks) was annoyed with how he got out, and he said he bowls better when he’s angry. Don’t need to vary lines, more about pace. We got a reward for that with a caught-and-bowled, and a few caught on the boundary.
“Perfect adaptation to circumstances. Feel like we can play on any surface. “Don’t think there were any demons, spinners on both sides used the pace really well, lack of pace was creating chances. We had a chat and adapted really well,” Brook said about the pitch.
Brook’s decision to hand the new ball to part-time off-spinner Will Jacks proved to be a masterstroke as he returned with 3/22, including two wickets in two balls, to reduce Sri Lanka to 34/5 inside the powerplay. The hosts never recovered and folded for 95 in 16.4 overs. On England’s batting, Brook said: “It was slow, hard to time. Salty played exceptionally to get 60, with everyone playing around him. Not the fluent Phil Salt we are used to, but he got us to a score.
“Jos hasn’t fired yet, but if we get on a good wicket, he’s going to get a hundred. Phil Salt, too. Once we figure the powerplay out and get on top with the bat, we’re going to be a hard team to beat.” England now leads Group 2 and will face Pakistan and New Zealand in their remaining Super Eights matches. For Sri Lanka, who sit at the bottom of the table, the road ahead has become complicated, with matches against New Zealand and Pakistan to follow.
Sri Lankan skipper DasunShanaka, however, counted the positives, saying they kept England 20 runs short. “Clearly, it’s very disappointing, but at the same time, we had a lot of positives in the ball. So I think we kept them towards a total which was at least 20 runs under par. “It’s the one bad game. The top four have done really well in the recent past, so I’m pretty sure that they will do well in the upcoming games.
“I expected my players to bat well. A combination of all the things (on the reasons for the low-scoring contest). I think the pitch played well. Certainly, it was a bit slow in the first innings, but with the lights on, it settled a bit. We played badly.” Shanaka top-scored for his side with 30 off 24 balls, even as the other batters failed miserably.
“The discussion was to take it deep (during the chase). We have played a lot of cricket in these sorts of conditions. It was about taking it deep and taking the positive options and the right options, which we didn’t take. “So eventually it’s one bad game which is not affordable in a World Cup, but we need to bounce back in the next couple of games,” said Shanaka.
