Caribbean Times 46th Issue - Thursday 7th July 2016

Thursday 7th July 2016 c a r i b b e a n t i m e s . a g 19
cont’d from pg 20
mates so well during his recent whiteball
experiences, both for England at the
World T20 and against Sri Lanka, and
for Mumbai Indians in the IPL.
“I don’t think I’d be trying to bat
time,” he said of his likely Test gameplan.
“Having had time out of the game
and watching certain players in our
team from the sidelines in South Africa
and watching on the TV this summer
- the way Jonny plays, the way Joe
Root plays, the way Ben Stokes plays -
they’re always trying to put the pressure
on. That’s the way English cricket has
gone. It’s about scoring runs. It doesn’t
matter how, it’s how many. You take
your bat out there to score runs, so try to
score them.”
That was something that Buttler conspicuously
failed to do towards the end
of his previous stint in the Test team,
particularly on the slow, low wickets in
Abu Dhabi and Dubai when he appeared
to fear the consequences of trusting his
attacking instincts. But, with Trevor
Bayliss, England’s head coach, cultivating
a “no fear” attitude to his team’s
strokeplay, Buttler believes he’s ready
for another go.
“If that’s what the coach is telling
you to do, it’s a good start,” he said. “It
probably comes down to making peace
with what you guys [the media] are
going to write and what the public are
going to think, and accepting that if you
get caught at second slip having a big
whoosh, so be it.
“I’d rather do that than leave one and
get bowled. The game’s about scoring
runs. What I’ve learned, whatever colour
the ball is, is that me trying to hit
the ball is going to get the best out of
myself.”
Buttler was memorably encouraged
by Bayliss to put his Test ambitions on
the backburner earlier this year, and was
given the go-ahead to sign a lucrative
deal to play a full season of IPL cricket
England batsman Jos Buttler.
for Mumbai Indians. But the time away
from the Test team has merely sharpened
his desire to make amends for his
shortcomings last time out.
“I’ve had some time away to think
and put cricket into perspective,” he
said. “I’ve had some fantastic experiences
over the last six months and learned
a lot - just by siting there watching. I
think the IPL was a fantastic experience.
You come back so much more confident
from that, brushing shoulders with those
kind of guys. A lot more clarity about
the mentality it takes to succeed.
“When you get dropped and left
out, you have a good think,” he added.
“Obviously I’ve experienced some great
things in the Test team, and you realise
why it’s the best form of the game. But
when you get dropped you have that
hunger to get back in.
“I haven’t played red-ball cricket
for a long time, but I’ve really enjoyed
my cricket and enjoyed doing what
I’ve been doing. Whatever happens, it
doesn’t change your ambition. Whatever
colour the ball is, you want to score
runs and influence the game.”
In many ways, the confidence in Buttler’s
game is as significant as his obvious
talent, for he readily admits that, at
the age of 25, and with five years of experience
at international level under his
belt, he is better able now to rationalise
the ups and downs of the sport that so
clearly got to him late last year.
“It’s the most confident I’ve felt,”
he said. “You gain another year. As a
21-year-old, when people said you’ll
become a better player with experience
you don’t really believe it. Maybe now
I’ve understood what that means.
“Some of the experiences of the last
year I’ve gone through, the highs and
lows, have really put it in perspective
- does it really matter, the cricket stuff?
It’s about not getting too caught up with
everything, and just enjoying it. I’ve felt
in good form. You try to capitalise on
that and use your experience to make
the most of it. It really boils down to enjoying
your cricket and making the most
of it.
And with that frame of mind, he feels
really to conquer any logistical challenge
that the international schedule can
throw at him.
“When you’re averaging 10, you’re
not going to be very confident. The word
is conviction. I didn’t have the same conviction
as I had against the white ball.
That’s what I’ll have to do. Show that
conviction, that confidence, and take it
on.” (ESPNcricinfo)