Broken man Jos Buttler sounds captaincy resignation alarm bell after ICC Champions Trophy disaster

World Cup 2023, T20 World Cup 2024 and now ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the England Cricket Team have exited all three major tournaments including both ODI ones from the league stage with Jos Buttler at the helm. With Afghanistan hitting the knockout punch in Lahore, Buttler is a broken man. While he sort of stopped himself from announcing his resignation, he had sounded the alarm bell already on the possibility of it.

“I don’t want to say any emotional statements right now. But I think for myself and the other guys at the top, we should consider all possibilities,” Jos Buttler said at the post-match presentation following England’s 8-run loss to Afghanistan.

England in a downward spiral

Since the 2023 World Cup, the England Cricket team has not won any ODI series. In fact, they have lost 18 matches out of 25 and are on a six-match losing streak. Under Buttler’s captaincy, England have lost bilateral series to West Indies twice, Australia and India once each since finishing 7th in the World Cup 2023, ahead of only Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and the Netherlands. At the World Cup, they could only manage three wins. They also suffered a defeat against Afghanistan.

In T20Is, things have been no different since England’s triumph in 2022. England have only won 15 out of 34 T20Is. They suffered an embarrassing semifinal defeat to India in the T20 World Cup 2024. In bilateral competitions, England lost to Bangladesh away, West Indies away, and India away. They have drawn a series at home against New Zealand. The only highlight has been their away series wins against two struggling teams West Indies and Pakistan.

A change in coach hasn’t worked out so far. Matthew Mott was let go with Brendon McCullum taking over both red-ball and white-ball duties. However, he has failed to win over his critics so far.

England since last triumph

Format	Mat	Win	Loss	NR
ODI*	67	29	34	4
T20I**	34	15	17	2

*ODIs since 2019 triumph, **T20Is since 2022 triumph

Time to move on from Jos Buttler?

At this moment, England will look at that possibility. Buttler is 34-years-old and a change in captaincy could do the trick. While Buttler hasn’t suffered a slump in his own form due to captaincy, injuries and constant changes in the team have not helped. Buttler may still have a lot to offer but may not be as the captain.

“I’ve seen lots of people say it (captaincy) doesn’t sit well with me, but I do enjoy it. I enjoy the challenge. Obviously, I don’t enjoy losing games of cricket and the results. And of course, when they’re not going well, you do look at yourself in the mirror and say, ‘Am I part of the problem or am I part of the solution?’ I think that’s what I’ve got to work out,” Buttler said at the post-match press conference. 

Jos Buttler’s captaincy records

Format	Mat	Win	Loss	Win %
ODI	44	18	25	40.9
T20I	51	26	22	50.98

While Buttler says he still enjoys captaincy, his future may not be in his hands anymore. He could suffer the same fate as Matthew Mott did following T20 World Cup. The England white-ball captain feared that he would have been sacked too along with Mott but he stayed on.

“You (the press) are probably not the first people I’d discuss that with. I’ll take a little bit of time to work out, personally, what I think is right. Obviously, the guys at the top are in charge, and they’ll have their own views as well,” Buttler added.

If Jos Buttler is removed or he quits, Harry Brook seems to be the natural successor in both formats. Ben Stokes, who has announced his ODI retirement again, is unlikely to lead the T20I team in T20 World Cup 2026. His future also remains under the cloud in Tests as England haven’t lived up to the Bazball hype so far. The series against India at home in June-August will be crucial for both Stokes and McCullum.

The post Broken man Jos Buttler sounds captaincy resignation alarm bell after ICC Champions Trophy disaster appeared first on Inside Sport India.

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