"I thought he'd get to T20 World Cup" - Jos Buttler says he did not see Eoin Morgan's retirement coming
England's new ODI and T20I skipper Jos Buttler on Friday opened up on Eoin Morgan's retirement. Buttler admitted that he did not see it coming. He felt that Morgan would play the T20 World Cup, scheduled to take place later this year in Australia.
Earlier in the day, Jos Buttler joined Sky Sports for a chat in the studio during the lunch break of the ongoing India vs England Test at Edgbaston. When asked if he saw ODI and T20I captaincy coming to him this year, Buttler replied:
"No. Initially, I thought he'd get to the ICC T20 World Cup. I thought that was what he was working towards, but he's always said, you know, if he felt like the time came and he obviously said that that came in Amsterdam. He's a very selfless guy. That's the way he's set his teams up and that's the way he lives his life."
During the same chat, Buttler added that death bowling is one area where he wants his team to improve. He opined that with some of the main bowlers injured, the new bowlers will get an opportunity to prove themselves in England colors.
Jos Buttler also spoke about the upcoming Pakistan tour
During the same chat, Buttler discussed England's T20 World Cup plans and highlighted the significance of the Pakistan tour. England will visit Pakistan later this year for a seven-match T20I series.
Buttler said that a full-strength team may not be available for that series. Nevertheless, it will still help England a lot because the new players will get a chance to play in pressure situations.
"Yeah, we play Pakistan in seven games but again that sort of maybe clashes a little bit with the Test matches. So there maybe a few guys that we have to manage through that period and maybe they don't come to Pakistan or maybe do just a little bit, you know, seven games is a lot so that gives us a chance to expose players to pressure situations," said the new English skipper.
Buttler's first assignment as the England captain is the upcoming T20I series against India, starting July 7. It will be interesting to see how he performs as a skipper.