Buttler batters Aussies again
AT EDGBASTON JOS Buttler vindicated the decision to promote him to opener in T20s with another matchwinning knock as England once more pulverised Australia.
Fresh from an unbeaten century which completed a 5-0 rout in the one day series at Old Trafford, the wicketkeeperbatsman showed his blade remained red hot.
This scorched stretch is fast turning into the summer of his life for Buttler. He starred in the Indian Premier League, returned with great success to the Test squad and now has sparkled in both form of whiteball cricket.
There was one moment last night when he fumbled behind the stumps – the ball ricocheting off his gloves and cost a single in Australia’s chase – when he looked momentarily human. But it was the exception which proved the rule in an otherwise superhuman summer.
After being put in on a belting batting track, Buttler’s 61 from 30 balls included five sixes and six fours and gave England a platform which put them on target for their highest ever T20 total to go with their record 50-over total at Trent Bridge.
And while they fell short of that – their 221-5 short of the 230 they scored batting second against South Africa in Mumbai in March 2016 – it was always too much for Australia and England won by 28 runs.
Milestones flash by quickly in white ball cricket nowadays and never more so than with England, who last night reached 50 in 3.5 overs and 100 in 9.1 overs.
Buttler was central and his latest performance made you wonder why England have ever kept him back and limited the number of balls he faced. The brutality of his strokeplay was breathtaking.
Buttler teed off in the fourth over of the innings, launching Kane Richardson for a huge six down the ground, scooping, edging, baseball slugging consecutive fours.
When he was out with his job done, pulling debutant Mitchell Swepson down the throat of deep midwicket, England were on top.
The problem for Australia in this white ball series has been even if they had been able to deal with Buttler, there has been little let up at the other end.
Jason Roy was not hanging around, making the most of being dropped on 27 (by Richardson who had a shocker of a night) to skip to 44 before departing in the tenth.
The pair built such a superb platform that England’s dressing room must have been fighting over going in. No before then three surprise that captain Eoin Morgan got his way, striding out ahead of Joe Root when the first wicket fell.
Morgan lasted just eight balls before surrendering his wicket away slightly recklessly but Root and Alex Hales then added 72 for the fourth wicket. Jonny Bairstow also hit two big sixes but England fell just short of their highest total.
A chase at just over 11 an over was always likely to be beyond them and so it proved. Aaron Finch batted well but England chipped away at his partners – D’Arcy Short, Glenn Maxwell and Travis Head all gone by the eighth over.
In the ninth Adil Rashid struck twice in three balls, and although Finch briefly threatened to upstage Buttler, hitting Moeen Ali for 22 runs in the 14th over on his way to 84, which took his side within 68 runs of an improbable victory with six overs to go.
But when he holed out to give Rashid a third victim, the chase faltered terminally.