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Published : 07 Mar 2025, 01:51 AM
Jos Buttler is determined to recover his form with the bat and help England win more World Cups after stepping down as limited-overs captain, director of men's cricket Rob Key said on Thursday.
England are looking for a new leader of the 50-over and T20 white ball teams after a group-stage exit from the ICC Champions Trophy.
Key said he felt for Buttler, a wicketkeeper and arguably England's greatest white-ball batter, who relinquished the captaincy with a win-loss record of 18-15 in one-day internationals and 26-22 in Twenty20s.
"You need Jos Buttler, the batsman. It doesn't matter how great a captain he is, if you're not playing as well as you can do as a batter, that's a massive loss to our team. So I do feel for him," he said.
"Ultimately, I think it's the right decision from him because I'd love to see Jos Buttler batting the way that he can do," Key told reporters at Lord's. "That's what wins us games of cricket.
"Speaking to Jos, I think he's absolutely committed to getting his form back to being the batter that he is and helping us win more World Cups," added Key.
Buttler, 34, led England to their second Twenty20 World Cup title in 2022, but performances have dipped since with the side failing to retain their T20 or ODI World Cup crowns.
The 50-over 2027 Cricket World Cup will be hosted by South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe and next year's T20 World Cup is in India and Sri Lanka.
"The 2027 World Cup is in South Africa, it's a different style of cricket. You're back to what we're probably more used to when you're out of the subcontinent and you're able to go and play with a style of cricket that suits us more," Key said.
"Jos Buttler is absolutely the key to us being successful and I still believe for years to come that he can do that."
"It might be that his role, he goes back to keeping...whatever it is, he is someone that you're building your team around."
