It has been a summer to savour for England’s Jos Buttler. The 27-year-old batsman has hit a purple patch ever since he was promoted to open the innings for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Following that move, Buttler leveled Virender Sehwag’s IPL record of five consecutive half-centuries before earning a recall to the England Test setup. Two vital half-centuries in the Test series against Pakistan followed before Buttler carried over his stupendous form into the limited-overs clashes against Australia and India.
The Englishman has scored 13 half-centuries now in his last 20 innings across all formats and has admitted that he is the form of his life.
“It’s been a really enjoyable few months. Yeah, it’s the form of a lifetime, but what I’ve done well is having the hunger and desire to turn up the next day and do it again. I want to be able to continue that,” Buttler told the Daily Mail.
The right-hander has credited his participation in the IPL as one of the reasons for his recent resurgence.
Buttler has described the IPL as an eye-opener. Image – RR/Twitter.
“The IPL was a big eye-opener. I also watch guys like Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Joe Root, Kane Williamson – I’ve watched how consistent they are. Kumar Sangakkara’s another. He’d just want to turn up each day and win the game for his team,” Buttler stated.
The England wicketkeeper-batsman reserved special praise for his India counterpart MS Dhoni whom he counts among his biggest idols.
“He’s (Dhoni) always been a bit of an idol of mine, especially his demeanour. I enjoy the way he never looks flustered, and he’s one of these guys who seems to be not out at the end,” said Buttler.
Buttler and his England team-mates are currently involved in an exciting tussle with India in the three-match ODI series. The series is locked at 1-1 after the hosts came roaring back with an 86-run win in the second ODI at Lord’s on Saturday. The deciding ODI will be held at Headingley in Leeds on Tuesday.