After securing a place in the final of the ongoing T20 World Cup, England skipper Jos Buttler has said that the Indian Premier League (IPL) experience helped his side in thrashing India by 10 wickets in the semifinal at the Adelaide Oval on Thursday and the situations that presented themselves in the lucrative league had prepared them for the showpiece event.
Notably, riding on Buttler’s unbeaten 80 and Alex Hales’ 86 not out, England made a mockery of India’s competitive total of 168/6 in the knockout stage to finish the match with four overs to spare.
In IPL, Butter was part of the Rajasthan Royals which had finished runners-up in the last season, losing to Gujarat Titans in the summit clash.
After the end of the semifinal game, Buttler said: “I think we have quite a lot of IPL experience in our team, as well, which means situations like tonight don’t surprise you. We’ve played in India a lot, understand the noise that comes with the fans of Indian cricket, especially when certain guys walk onto the field or when they’re batting and the impact they can have.”
Buttler’s overall record in the IPL is strong and he continued his good form in the 2022 season as well. The England skipper smashed 863 runs in 17 matches for the Rajasthan Royals, helping them to the final. In 2022 season, Buttler averaged 57.63 and his strike rate was 149.05, with the England captain smashing four centuries along the way.
Buttler, 32, felt his own individual IPL experience wasn’t the only thing that helped his side in their semi-final. With the scoring rate rocketing during England’s chase, India all-rounder Hardik Pandya and former captain Virat Kohli looked for crowd support to build pressure on their opponents but to no avail.
Buttler, however, said it actually gave him more confidence. “If he (Pandya) goes to try and get the crowd behind you, that’s telling you that you’re doing well. I think we have quite a lot of IPL experience in our team, as well, which means situations like tonight don’t surprise you,” he said.
”We’ve played in India a lot, understand the noise that comes with the fans of Indian cricket, especially when certain guys walk onto the field or when they’re batting and the impact they can have. But having had so much experience as a team playing in the IPL, I don’t think it’s as much of a factor anymore,” he concluded.