England white-ball skipper Jos Buttler was ruled out of any form of competitive cricket since the T20 World Cup semi-final after he suffered a calf injury while preparing for the Hundred. He was looking to make a comeback with the T20 Blast quarter-final for Lancashire.
The English side still does not seem overwhelmingly concerned with their captain’s fitness ahead of their 8-match white ball series against Australia. England’s new-look squad has been reported to report at the Utilita Bowl on Sunday, as they are supposed to train ahead for two days. This will be when the ECB medical staff gets a clearer picture of Buttler’s availability.
England also does not have a backup with the lack of a white-ball vice-captain, though Phil Salt and Sam Curran have emerged as main names to be contenders for Buttler’s unavailability.
Also, Buttler is relieved of his role as a wicket-keeper with other players also seen in the role hence there are more chances of him featuring despite suffering a setback. Though Buttler had targeted the Quarter-final at Hove ahead of his international outing as his comeback match.
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Reportedly, Benkenstein has informed the BBC Radio of Lancashire, that Buttler who was already recovering from an injury has almost suffered it again. He even speculated that the skipper might not only be out of contention for their team but also not have many chances to resume international play. Due to his injured state, Jos was also released ahead of the SA20 2024 by the Paarl Royals side.
Lancashire will not much be bothered by Buttler’s absence as they will have other international breakout players, Phil Salt, Liam Livingstone and Mahmood to feature for them. Also, Jofra Archer is set to play for Sussex before making a return to T20I.
