England’s white ball captain Jos Buttler is still recovering from the calf injury which ruled him out of Australia white ball leg tour and the ongoing West Indies white ball series too. Jos Buttler‘s absence was seen in the 1st ODI against West Indies, as England’s middle order fell like a pack of cards as a result West Indies quite convincingly won the match.
Jos Buttler recently announced that he won’t take a part in SA20 2025 league due to national commitments to England. Jos Buttler hasn’t been able to dictate the terms after ICC T20 WC 2022 triumph; under his leadership England had a forgettable ODI WC 2023 and also were knocked down by India in T20 WC 2024. It looks as if the burden of captaincy is affecting Buttler’s natural aggressive cricket.
Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes have singed two year central contracts- Rob Key
ECB’s managing director Rob Key was delighted to confirm that Ben Stokes & Jos Buttler have signed another 2 year central contracts. Rob Key pointed out that England players prioritize playing for their country which is a huge boost for the nation. Ben Stokes & Jos Buttler would be centrally contracted till 2026 autumn.
“The strength and depth of talent across England men’s red and white-ball cricket is clear in the quality of players who are centrally contracted. Both our captains have signed two-year central contracts that showcase the commitment of all the players to prioritise playing for their country,” said Rob Key.
Huge Challenge awaits Jos Buttler
Jos Buttler now will work closely with the new white ball head coach Brendon McCullum during India white ball series. It would be interesting to see how McCullum can revolutionize England’s white ball cricket team who is going through a bit of a transition. McCullum would be aware of the fact that ICC Champions Trophy 2025 is slated in February and he needs to quickly find a winning combination.
England’s Test skipper Ben Stokes had given a hint during England’s summer that he can come back into ODI team if Brendon McCullum wants. If that happens then England can be a force to reckon with as the flamboyant all-rounder can contribute to the all facets of the game. There are also chances that Joe Root & Jonny Bairstow would be back in the setup as well as the chief selector Luke Wright said that the duo are in contention.
It won’t be wrong to say that ECB once again is playing with fire by including star players all of a sudden just before an ICC event. We should not forget that a couple of bad matches in ICC Champions Trophy 2025 can end the journey for any team in the tournament. ECB has become quite unpredictable post 2019 ODI WC where they are trying multiple new players in the series and the recent example is of the 1st ODI of West Indies vs England where 4 cricketers made their debut and ECB paid the price for it.