England name Jonny Bairstow as replacement for 'rested' Jos Buttler

Buttler (left) has been replaced by Bairstow for the remaining three ODIs against Australia

England have rested wicketkeeper Jos Buttler for the remaining three matches of the ongoing five-match ODI series against Australia, BBC Sport reports. The 24-year-old will be replaced by his long-term rival Jonny Bairstow as the hosts look to claw their way back into the series.

Australia have responded strongly following the 3-2 Ashes reverse and defeat in the one-off T20 against their arch rivals by winning the opening two ODIs. The visitors scored in excess of 300 on both occasions as England fell short by 59 and 64 runs at Southampton and Lord’s respectively.

Buttler recorded single-digit scores in both the matches, but has in fact been struggling throughout the summer. He scored just 122 runs from eight innings in the recently concluded Ashes series and with England set to face-off against Pakistan in the UAE later this month, England head coach Trevor Bayliss believes Buttler will only benefit with a stint away from the national team.

“It has become clear in the last couple of days that Jos will benefit from a break from cricket ahead of the winter tours," Bayliss said. “While we initially felt Jos would have enough left in the tank, a rest is key and Jos has had a heavy workload throughout 2015."

While Buttler has cemented himself as England’s first-choice wicketkeeper over the past few years, his struggles with the bat has left the door open for Bairstow who boasts better return with the bat than Buttler, often being played as a specialist batsman with Buttler featuring in the same side.

Bairstow, who made 34 from 40 balls on Sunday in a losing cause as his county side Yorkshire lost to Gloucestershire in the Royal London One-Day Cup semi-final, will now have a chance to cement his place in the side in the absence of Buttler.

Australia will also be making one change to their squad with David Warner’s thumb injury ruling him out of the remainder of the tour. Aaron Finch has been brought in as a replacement.

The third and fifth ODIs will take at Old Trafford on September 8^th and 13^th respectively while the 4^th ODI will be staged at Headingley on 11^th.