Edgbaston, as the scene of their apparent epiphany in the 50-over format 12 months ago, holds happy memories for England’s current generation, with Eoin Morgan’s side, for the first time in their history, topping 400 runs against New Zealand to set the ball rolling on a more enlightened era of cricket with the white ball.
Jos Buttler, the wicketkeeper-batsman who scored an electrifying 66-ball century in that game, believes their return for Friday’s second one-day international with Sri Lanka means the team now have to cope with raised expectations and, as a result, need to maintain a desire to keep attacking as a batting unit.
While Tuesday’s tie at Trent Bridge was a thriller for those packed into the ground, it did contain a worrying collapse by England’s top order as they crumbled to 30 for four and 82 for six in pursuit of 287, before Buttler and Chris Woakes combined for 24.3 overs and 138 runs to set up the barn-storming final over in which Liam Plunkett smoked the last delivery for six.
It was a rescue job by the lower order, certainly. But Buttler, who made 93 from 99 balls in an innings of considerable maturity for a 25-year-old whose default mode is to fire missiles of his own, believes the solution for the higher order who faltered under the Nottingham floodlights is for them to go harder than before, rather than bat in a more circumspect fashion.
“If anything we should come out and play even more shots,” Buttler said after the team trained on Thursday morning. “That’s the way we want to play our cricket. We want to put teams under pressure and there’s no reason to change. This style of cricket has been good fun to play in and has given us some success.”
It is in Birmingham where this mentality was first truly adopted by the team a year ago, as the shackles of the failed World Cup campaign in Australia and New Zealand were kicked off to the tune of 408 for nine against Brendon McCullum’s tourists.
Buttler claims this was a response to instructions from Morgan and Paul Farbrace, caretaker coach at the time, to take the bold option when caught in two minds with Joe Root, arriving at the crease for the second ball of the match and creaming a century by the 24th over, setting the example.
Buttler recalled: “The message that day was to go and entertain, back yourself to take the game on and if you’re unsure take the risk and go for it. You’re going to lose games, that’s the nature of international sport and playing against good teams, but always give yourselves the best chance and try to fall on the positive side.
“It was probably Joe Root who really went out and seemed to time the ball from ball one and took his options and it seemed to resonate through the rest of the squad that we can do that as well. I think the way he played really led from the front that day, as in ‘this is the way we’re going to do it’ and for 12 months the same messages have always been read through.
“I think there’s now from the media and from the public a bit more expectation for us to do that every time and to play well but it shouldn’t change the dressing room mentality. Expecting us to do that every time doesn’t mean that we will but let’s give ourselves the best chance to do that.”
While Root was the catalyst that day, he has, by his own lofty standards, been in something of a lull this summer with 80 of his 89 runs from five international innings coming in one knock at Chester-le-Street.
A rare but simple dropped catch on Tuesday, as well as some confused advice to partner Alex Hales that he review a clear catch off the bat, and his own demise for two, chopping on to the stumps, has raised mutterings as to whether England’s premier batsman – having played 74 matches in the past two years, the most among the current set-up – requires a break at some stage.
Buttler, who has played with Root since England Under-17 level, said: “He’s one of the best in the world and it’s probably just because of the high standards he’s set over the past two, three years of international cricket, how he’s played, that people expect it of him.
“I’m sure he’ll bounce back and he’s going to play some fantastic innings throughout this series. There are lots of pressures on him. He plays all forms of the game and I think that’s something England management always have to be careful of with guys like Joe, Moeen and Ben Stokes playing all three forms. He’s a very important player and if he needs a rest he’ll say he needs a rest and that will happen.”
England are expected to be unchanged, having released Steven Finn to play Twenty20 for Middlesex on Thursday night, but Sri Lanka could be forced to make one switch as their captain, Angelo Mathews, struggles with a hamstring injury that meant he missed the denouement to the tie in Nottingham and looked laboured during a fitness test on Thursday. Mathews will be assessed again in the morning with Dinesh Chandimal on standby to lead the side in his absence.
The England and Wales Cricket Board has announced that Ireland will visit for a two-match one-day series next summer – a first encounter on English soil – at Bristol and Lord’s on 5 and 7 May. Andrew Strauss, the ECB director of cricket who led England in their only defeat against Ireland, at the 2011 World Cup, said: “We’ve been hugely impressed by the major strides Irish cricket has made in the last decade.” Andrew Strauss, the ECB director of cricket who captained England for their only defeat to Ireland, during the 2011 World Cup, said: “We’ve been hugely impressed by the major strides Irish cricket has made in the last decade.”
England (probable) Alex Hales, Jason Roy, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (c), Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wk), Moeen Ali Chris Woakes, David Willey, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid
Sri Lanka (possible) Kusal Perera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Upul Tharanga, Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Angelo Mathews (capt), Dasun Shanaka, Farveez Maharoof, Seekkuge Prasanna, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal
