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It was a fascinating dynamic to have Morgan as part of the commentary team in Australia given that he was linked with England so soon. That he was not part of the squad during that tournament was not entirely unexpected, but his retirement came suddenly during England’s season after a series in the Netherlands and saw Butler step into the job just over four months before the World Cup.
To complicate matters, Buttler then suffered a calf injury that ended his tournament early and would rule him out of England’s seven-match series against Pakistan. Importantly though, he went on this tour as a non-playing member as Moeen Ali captained them to a 4-3 win. There was an ambassadorial role in this given the importance of the tour, but he also acknowledged the importance of continuing the build towards the T20 World Cup.
“I think it’s part of my own journey as a player and as a person to be at this stage in my career when I’m captain, to learn something very new that I haven’t done before and it’s exciting to get the chance let’s do that,” Butler said. “As disappointing as the summer was in terms of results, I think I actually learned a lot during that period, with the benefit of having a few months to think about things that I probably would have done differently or how certain situations arose and how they played out, how I felt and how I reacted to them. I feel like I’m growing into the role day by day.”
Against New Zealand at the Gabba, he stepped up at the key moment to push England towards a total, then used several tactical duels to good effect: Moeen opened the bowling and conceded just four runs, while Curran removed the dangerous Finn Allen. Glenn Phillips almost took the game away but England held their nerve.
Buttler was even better in the semi-final against India and the aforementioned interview with Ward and Morgan highlighted some of his tactical moves on the field. Buttler said the first fielding was based as much on knowing how India like to chase as anything else and his use of Adil Rashid earlier in the innings was because he was aware of Rishabh’s presence Pant in the middle order. Rashid had an outstanding night, taking 1 for 20, removing the central figure of Suryakumar Yadav.
He took a risk by leaving Chris Jordan with three overs to make the final five in his first outing of the competition, but earlier decisions kept India quiet enough that even Hardik Pandya’s late injury proved not to be a game-changer .
“I hope I have more time as captain and with Matthew Mott we can shape the next era of English white-ball cricket,” Buttler said. “Of course, we are still reaping the benefits of Eoin Morgan’s tenure and the changes that have taken place in the white-ball game in England, and that is clearly evident in the strength and depth of talent we have now.”
When Buttler lofted Mohammed Shami straight down the ground for a six, it set the definitive statement for the ultimate individual and team performance. One more win and the transition of Morgan’s legacy into the Butler era would be complete.
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