IND vs ENG T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final: England captain Jos Buttler ‘doesn’t want to see India vs Pakistan final’
Speaking at a press conference in Adelaide on Wednesday (November 9), England captain Jos Buttler said he would like to play the India-Pakistan final before the semi-final against India.
England captain Jos Buttler and his team will face Rohit Sharma-led India in the second semi-final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 at the Adelaide Oval on Thursday (November 10). Even before the start of the game, fans are looking forward to the India-Pakistan final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday (November 13).
Speaking at a press conference in Adelaide on Wednesday (November 9), Buttler said the team wanted to play sports for the India-Pakistan final before the semi-final clash against India. The wicketkeeper-batsman backed his team to a semi-final win over India on November 10 to deny cricket fans a high-voltage replay of the 2007 T20 World Cup final on cricket’s biggest stage.
“We certainly don’t want to see an India-Pakistan final, we will try to spoil their party. They are a good team,” said Buttler.
Talking about his team’s performance in the tournament and their readiness to play in the semi-finals, he said, “We have reached the level we wanted. Everyone is interested in playing in the semi-finals. Obviously, we are very excited about the match against a great Indian team. We would love to be in that situation.
Buttler also shared news on the fitness of key England players David Malan and Mark Wood, saying they are yet to recover and are in doubt for the playing eleven. He also hinted at Phil Salt as a possible replacement for Malone’s position.
“Both Malone and Wood are doubtful. But let’s see how they fare on match day. We trust our medical team. It takes people to be fit. We have full faith in every member of our team. Back on the Pakistan tour we gave a lot of youngsters a chance and they did well. Phil Salt has a wonderful mindset, especially for T20Is. “He’s very efficient,” said Captain Butler.
The explosive batsman expressed his views on India’s bowling line-up, saying that Indian pacer Bhuvneshwar is a great bowler but he is not afraid of him. While talking about Yuzvendra Chahal, he also emphasized the importance of spinners in the middle overs and branded him as a wicket-taking option.
“He (Bhuvneshwar) is a good bowler but I am definitely not afraid of him. India is a very strong team. There are some amazing players in the team. I think spinners play a big role in T20 cricket by taking wickets in the middle overs. Taking wickets stops the flow of runs. UC is a “A great bowler. He’s a wicket-taker,” Buttler said.
“We are happy to play in the semi-finals. We know we have a chance to win the way we play. We want to stick to our plan. I talk to Eon a lot. He is a great player but I lead the team in my way. But he’s a great guy,” he said, when asked about the team’s game plan and inputs from England’s World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan.
The England captain spoke about India’s in-form batsman Suryakumar Yadav and said that he is very talented but he could be dropped and the team will be serious about doing so. “He (Suryakumar) has been good to watch. He is a batter with lots of shots. But you need a ball to get the batter out and we will be desperate to do that,” Buttler said.
