How do you stop Jos Buttler? It was a question that was being asked again after the talented batsman’s latest one-day international hundred saw England to a 12-run win over Pakistan in the second one-day international on Saturday.
With a home World Cupjust weeks away, Buttler’s 110 not out, which saw him reach three figures offjust 50 balls, was another reminder of his match-winning ability in white-ballcricket.
This was Buttler’seighth century in 129 matches at this level, with the England ODI wicket-keepernow having scored 3,497 runs at an average of 42.
But what makesButtler a particularly devastating batsman in this format is a strike-rate of119.88 — a figure bettered only by the West Indies’ Andre Russell (130.45) andAustralia’s Glenn Maxwell (121.95).
Russell, however, hasonly scored 998 runs in 52 ODIs, with Maxwell making 2,700 in 100 matches.
Alterations in fieldand bouncer restrictions, a reduction in the number of overs in an ODI,generally shorter boundaries and the change to a ball from each end as opposedto just one for a full duration of an innings, make comparisons across thegenerations arguably even harder than they would be in Test cricket.
For many observersthat means Vivian Richards remains the most destructive one-day batsmen they’veseen.
The West Indies greatscored 6,721 runs in 187 ODIs including 11 hundreds at an average of 47, — atally including a brilliant, match-winning 138 not out in the 1979 World Cupfinal against England at Lord’s — with a strike-rate of 90.20.
But just as Richardsrevolutionised ODI batting with extraordinary ‘inside out’ drives to theboundary off bowlers as fast as Australia’s Jeff Thomson, so are Buttler’srange of scoops and flicks helping expand the repertoire of present-dayrun-getters.
Buttler’s success is also a matter of attitude as well astalent — as evidence by the words “fuck it” he has written on thetop of his bat handle to remind him of his best approach to batting.
‘No answer’ –
Pakistan coach MickeyArthur admitted he was at a loss about the best way to stop Buttler followingthe 28-year-old’s batting fireworks in Southampton.
“Oh, I don’tknow, I’ve just asked the bowlers actually. They didn’t give me an answereither,” Arthur said after Pakistan fell 1-0 behind in this five-matchseries.
“We’ll sit downand analyse that and try to work out a plan.
“I don’t thinkwe’re going to stop him, we’ve got to find a way to get him out. The longer hebats he’s going to do some serious damage.”
England captain EoinMorgan had arguably the best view in the ground while making a far fromsluggish 71 not out while sharing an unbroken stand of 162 with Buttler thattook the hosts to 373 for three in their 50 overs.
“He’s very good.He really is,” left-hander Morgan told Sky Sports.
“I was in primeposition to see the whole innings and his freakish knocks seem to be gettingcloser and closer together, so that’s a good sign for us moving forward.
“But he seems tohave a gear that not many of us have. I certainly don’t have it, but it’s greatto watch. “Healways seem to time his run really well, regardless of what time he comes in,he always seems to have enough balls to go on and bang a 50-ball hundred.”