An ANat Sciver-Brunt goal for four, a flood of blue jerseys onto the field, and a forever-altered game resulted from this play. Sunday’s victory by Mumbai Indians over Delhi Capitals by seven wickets concluded the inaugural season of the Women’s Premier League. The tournament will continue, however.
While the WPL represents something new and promising, the men’s equivalent, the behemoth that is the Indian Premier League, represents only one thing: absolute dominance.
The IPL, in its sixteenth season, controls men’s cricket. It secured a $6 billion [£4.9 billion] rights agreement in June of last year, and the two-month tournament is now the centerpiece of a larger operation.
IPL franchise owners have taken over the South African Twenty20 league, dipped their toes in the United Arab Emirates, and will even attempt to penetrate the American market. And somehow at the center of all of this is an Englishman with a gentle accent.
Last season, Jos Buttler was more than just a beautiful face for the Rajasthan Royals. His 863 runs at 57.53 over 17 innings, including four centuries, helped his side finish second.
Buttler’s flawless century, which turned patient starts into chaos, proved he is the IPL’s best English import. Then came the home summer, England’s Test change, and a brief thought that Buttler could open in Test cricket. “I honestly thought someone had written the wrong story,” Buttler laughed when asked by Jonathan Agnew.”
The white ball and captaining England’s short-form sides have been his focus ever since. In a schedule that requires players to compromise, this narrowing of his duties led to a T20 World Cup win. This arrangement has worked out well for everyone involved.
England did the correct thing by removing Buttler from their Test squad after the 2021-22 Ashes. Fifty-seven Tests had brought periods of happiness but also a lack of satisfaction. Buttler’s aura as a limited-overs superstar never fully transferred to his red-ball counterpart.
In the Test match, he intended to perform more responsibly. A few years ago, he stated, “To be successful in Test cricket, you must be able to defend the ball well and protect the top of off-stump.” “You don’t want to be a dasher who gets 20 or 30 points, perhaps 60 or 70 points.”
And yet, Buttler’s finest Test innings was a white-ball 75 that secured a tremendously impressive victory against Pakistan in the fourth innings at Old Trafford in 2020. The impending prospect of being dropped heightened his sense of adventure as he swept and cover-driven Yasir Shah on a deteriorating pitch.
This leads us to a somewhat regrettable conclusion, a lost opportunity, a “what-if” moment. There must be others who question how Buttler would have performed in the current Test team. Here stands the clearest, most pure hitter of all, who is thoroughly watchable regardless of format. What if all he needed to succeed in whites was the TLC of Baz and Ben?
In the early days of his tenure, Brendon McCullum referenced him, pondering aloud, “How could he be so dominant in one form of the game and not quite have found his footing, aside from a few fleeting performances, in Test cricket? Buttler’s last Test – and first-class appearance – was England’s draw with Australia in Sydney early last year.
There are valid reasons for his continued absence. How could you play a Test in New Zealand one day and captain a one-day international team in Bangladesh the next? Then there is Ben Foakes’s excellence behind the wickets and his contribution of valuable runs in front of them. How would Buttler, a specialist batsman, fit into a middle order that is already struggling to accommodate Jonny Bairstow?
There is also the belief that it would not function regardless. Solid first-class fundamentals have been the driving force behind England’s batsmen’s explosive performances over the past year. Despite his struggles before 2022, Bairstow has always relied on a County Championship batting average above 50.
Buttler’s average after 63 county matches is 31.54 (0.4 runs below his Test one). The highlight of Harry Brook’s game is his forward defense, which is worth the price of admission alone. The old principles are still relevant.
By the voice of reason, Buttler’s Test career is over. He has served his purpose, and they are doing just fine without him. In the coming weeks, he will likely dominate in the Indian Premier League, and later this year, he will focus on the World Cup. And then one more the following year.
This is now his universe, and it’s a good one. However, you continue to ponder the same query that McCullum posted a year ago. Buttler’s extraordinary talent compels you to comply. Hence, a position may become available in the future if a calendar vacancy occurs. And to satiate curiosity, McCullum and Ben Stokes repeat the two famous words written on Buttler’s bat handle: “fuck it.”
There are valid reasons for his continued absence. How could you play a Test in New Zealand one day and captain a one-day international team in Bangladesh the next? Then there is Ben Foakes’s excellence behind the wickets and his contribution of valuable runs in front of them. How would Buttler, a specialist batsman, fit into a middle order that is already struggling to accommodate Jonny Bairstow?
There is also the belief that it would not function regardless. Solid first-class fundamentals have been the driving force behind England’s batsmen’s explosive performances over the past year. Despite his struggles before 2022, Bairstow has always relied on a County Championship batting average above 50. Buttler’s average after 63 county matches is 31.54 (0.4 runs below his Test one). The highlight of Harry Brook’s game is his forward defense, which is worth the price of admission alone. The old principles are still relevant.
By the voice of reason, Buttler’s Test career is over. He has served his purpose, and they are doing just fine without him. In the coming weeks, he will likely dominate in the Indian Premier League, and later this year, he will focus on the World Cup. And then one more the following year.
This is now his universe, and it’s a good one. However, you continue to ponder the same query that McCullum posted a year ago. Buttler’s extraordinary talent compels you to comply. Hence, a position may become available in the future if a calendar vacancy occurs. And to satiate curiosity, McCullum and Ben Stokes repeat the two famous words written on Buttler’s bat handle: “fuck it.”
