Jos Buttler should ‘always’ be in England Test side, says Shane Warne
Written by News on 09/08/2020
Shane Warne says Jos Buttler should “always” be picked in England’s Test team after his superb innings of 75 helped England chase 277 to clinch a memorable win over Pakistan at Emirates Old Trafford.
Buttler’s place in the England side had been called into question after making a number of wicketkeeping errors in the first #raisethebat Test and having only scored one Test ton in his 45 caps, back in 2018.
But Buttler’s counter-attacking innings on Saturday, striking seven boundaries and one six in his 101-ball knock, is precisely why Warne would have him as one of the first names on the team sheet.
“He should always be in the side,” Warne told Sky Sports. “Jos is a very good and reliable keeper but, occasionally, you’re going to have a few bad days – it wasn’t easy out there, either.
“But Jos should always be in your side because of what he’s capable of, with the bat especially.
“And then his keeping, he’s a good leader among the team as well – there’s a calmness about him – he’s the whole package.
“He’s always one of the first pencilled in for me.”
Warne also believe Buttler’s confident attitude at the crease helped rub off on Chris Woakes, who struck a match-winning unbeaten 84 after having averaged only 5.22 in his last six Tests with the bat.
“What really impressed me with Buttler was the way he went about it, he trusted himself, said ‘I’m the man, I’m going to get this done’,” added Warne.
“He just played beautifully; and that helped Woakes at the other end, who had been struggling for form, but came in and played extremely well.
“I’m very happy for Woakes and, in particular, Buttler. It was a fantastic chase, against a quality attack, on a good pitch.
“It’s a special win and one the players will be very proud of. The best thing I saw from England is it was a real ‘character’ win.”
Echoing Warne’s comments, Sky Sports’ Nasser Hussain believes England’s pursuit of Pakistan’s 277-runs target helped Buttler treat it like a one-day game, in which he averages over 40 and has nine hundreds for England.
“We discussed how England should go about it, and it was all about tempo,” said Hussain. “It helped Jos that he had to almost go into one-day mode.
“We’ve seen some of his great one-day innings’, like the one he played here [at Old Trafford] against Australia, when he goes into one-day mode he is unstoppable.
“That game was not won [for Pakistan] until they got Buttler out and, by the time they did, it was done and dusted.”
Watch the second #raisethebat Test between England and Pakistan, live on Sky Sports Cricket from 10.30am on Thursday.
(c) Sky Sports 2020: Jos Buttler should ‘always’ be in England Test side, says Shane Warne
