Aged 35, Buttler, boasting of an experience of 154 T20Is, is the oldest and most experienced player in the English pack. However, he has also appeared to be a batsman who looks to be past his best.
However, England, especially their white-ball captain Harry Brook, aren’t giving up on him. Going into the all-important semifinal encounter with hosts India at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday, England captain Harry Brook shot back when questioned on whether England were worried about Buttler’s form. Brook also asserted that it was a great idea to offer any advice or suggestions to one of Enmgland’s greatest ever white-ball batters.
“Yeah, you don’t have to talk to him too much. I think leaving him alone is probably the best thing to do. He’s been a powerhouse of a cricketer for many years, as we’ve all seen. I’ve been asked this question thousands of times now, and I just think there should be no reason to question why he’s in the team,” said Brook at the pre- match press conference.
Buttler has played multiple IPL games at the Wankhede during his stints with various franchises in the IPL-for the Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals and now Gujarat Titans. He will be one batter that the Indian team will be wary of in Thursday’s semifinal because of his vast experience and familiarity with the conditions. Buttler has been struggling for form in recent months and has managed scores in the 20s in England’s last three matches in the series against Sri Lanka ahead of the World Cup.
Asked about his opinion of the pitch at the Wankhede Stadium pitch for the semifinal, Brook confessed that he had little idea about pitches, and revealed that said he would have a chat with England head coach Brendon McCullum, have a look at the stats and take a call on what call to take if he wins the toss. “I don’t know. You’re asking the wrong man. I don’t know anything about wickets. I’ll have a chat with Baz tonight and tomorrow before the game. We’ll have a look at the stats and see what to do first if we win the toss,” said the England captain.
Leading for the first time in the T20 World Cup, Brook has marshalled his recourse well, making full use of Will Jacks’ off-spin in the subcontinental conditions being a particular masterstroke. England have lost only one match in seven games, a 30-run defeat to West Indies in the league phase at the Wankhede Stadium.
“We obviously get a lot of stats, we’ve got a lot of videos, we can see where the batters are trying to hit the ball, we know the wagon wheels and what not, we know the match-ups, it’s just about trying to fiddle the bowlers to make sure that it’s uncomfortable for their batters for as long as possible really. They’re obviously a very good side, and they can adapt to different bowlers, but my job is to try and make it as uncomfortable for them as possible,” said Brook.
Like his teammate and left-arm pacer Sam Curran said the other day, Brook believes that his side’s best performance in the tournament may still be ahead of them. Brook admitted that while England have found ways to win throughout the tournament, the team is yet to deliver a “perfect” performance, something he hopes could arrive when they need it the most. “It’s a dream come true for most of us to play in a World Cup semifinal against the home nation on a very iconic ground. We’re all really looking forward to it,” Brook said.
The 27-year-old Brook, one of the most exciting white-ball batsmen in world cricket, has led England’s campaign from the front, having dished out a scintillating knock of 100 off just 51 balls to guide England to a two-wicket win over Pakistan in a tense chase in a crucial Super 8s clash at Pallekele, which sealed England’s spot in the T20 World Cup semifinals.
The England captain insisted his side will approach the contest with confidence and freedom.
“We’re obviously going into the game very confident. We’re playing some good cricket. We haven’t quite played that perfect performance and I feel like it’s just around the corner. Hopefully it’s tomorrow night and we go out there, play with freedom and be brave,” he asserted.
England’s path to the semi-finals has been marked by resilience. On several occasions they clawed their way back from difficult situations to secure dramatic, thrilling wins against Nepal and Pakistan and New Zealand, though they did well to remain unbeaten in the Super 8 stage.
Brook believes that those tense, tight finishes have helped England in competition like the World Cup, with every close win perhaps injecting that they were good enough to go all the way and clinch the title. “We’ve won them tight games which in World Cups is very important. It feels like we’ve never really been out of any game so far and that holds you in good stead in these world competitions.”
Much of England’s success has come through collective contributions, but Brook said that he is now sensing a single standout performance, which will perhaps decide the fate of this semifinal clash.
“All it takes is one of the top seven to get a decent score or one of our bowlers to have an amazing day. So far it’s mainly been team performances, but I feel like there’s a big individual performance to come soon,” the England captain said.
Brook highlighted the fact that the likes of Will Jacks, Tom Banton and Liam Dawson have played key roles during the tournament. All these players look be flourishing under his captaincy. “Jacksy (Jacks) for example has had four Player of the Match awards this World Cup,” Brook said. “Dawson has played a massive role in plenty of games and Banton has won us a few games off his own bat. They’ve taken their roles on beautifully.”
Even though he’s out of form, India’s mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, still the top-ranked T20I bowler, poses a significant challenge. Brook himself has been troubled by Varun several times, especially during England’s 4-1 defeat to India in India early last year. However, Brook dismissed the notion that England tend to struggle against spin, pointing to the team’s success in Sri Lanka just before the 2026 T20 World Cup, when they beat the islanders 2-1 in the ODIs and 3-0 in the T20I series.
“England always gets a bad reputation about playing spin. But we’ve got a lot of confidence playing on turning pitches. Chakaravarthy is one of the best bowlers in the world and I’ll try my best to score as many runs as I can against him,” ,” he said
backed by a passionate home crowd and enjoying familiar home conditions at the Wankhede Stadium, India start as the favourites, a fact that Brook acknowledged the scale of the challenge, but insisted T20 cricket often produces surprises. “India were the favourites from the start of the competition, as they should be. But T20 cricket is such a fickle game — anything can happen,” Brook felt.
