Jos Buttler carried his excellent form in 2018 into 2019 with another half-century in the Big Bash League, where he is the highest run-getter.
Buttler has so far accumulated 250 runs at the average of 50 and strike-rate of 140.44 for Sydney Thunder, with three half-centuries. His 54-ball 55 against Perth Scorchers on a slow wicket helped Sydney win the match on Wednesday, January 2.
“The last year is the best I’ve ever played for a prolonged period of time,” Buttler, who has been named in Wisden’s Test and ODI teams of the year, told cricket.com.au.
If you could swap one player in our ODI team of the year for one player in your national side, who would it be? 🤔https://t.co/TlxrcGXfwS
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) January 1, 2019
“I’ve had some great experiences over the last year, and I’m probably at an age now where I understand my own game a lot better and I’m just trying to keep learning … Over time you learn a lot more about yourself, so I’m trying to take that confidence into games. I’ve got a lot of confidence and quite a bit of clarity as well.
“That’s always something you fight with a little bit in the game – there’s that constant battle of trying to improve, but not losing what you’ve got and that kind of thing,” Buttler said.
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“It gives you a lot of clarity and you can make peace with it because this is what I’ve got, and I’m going to be the best version of myself and not get too caught up in what other people try to do. I’m just trying to enjoy my game and not have any expectations either.”
Known for his innovative stroke-play, Buttler was no different against Perth on Wednesday, entertaining the fans with a range of unconventional shots including a reverse-pull shot for boundary.
Jos Buttler, STOP IT! 🤩 #BBL08 pic.twitter.com/WFLqqcAIyx
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) January 2, 2019
“It’s a bit of a reverse slap, top edge,” Buttler described his stroke. “It’s good fun! Cricket is great because you can be so creative … I practise a lot of different shots; one of my favourite things in practice is trying to do new things and trying to master different shots.”
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He got out playing a similar reverse sweep against Jhye Richardson, hitting the stumps with his bat. “I like to have as many options to call upon as I can, and today I felt like I kept trying things that weren’t quite working, and you get to a point where you come up with that maybe being the best shot at the time,” he said.
