Buttler unsure about captaincy after CT exit
England's white-ball captain Jos Buttler has hinted that he may step down from his role after the team's early exit from the ICC Men's Champions Trophy 2025.
England was knocked out of the tournament after losing two back-to-back group-stage matches against Australia and Afghanistan. They are the first team from Group B to be eliminated from the eight-team event, which continues until March 9.
Buttler, who led England to victory in the 2022 T20 World Cup, has now faced disappointment in three major tournaments as captain. Speaking after the match, he did not give a clear answer about his future but suggested that changes might be needed.
"I don't want to say any emotional statements right now. But I think for myself and the other guys at the top, we should consider all possibilities," Buttler said.
The England captain was also disappointed with the loss but praised Afghanistan's Ibrahim Zadran for his game-changing performance in the last 10 overs of the first innings.
"It's really disappointing. I thought we had our chances in the game. Another fantastic game of cricket, but disappointing to come out on the wrong side," he said.
"They got away from us there in the last 10 overs. Credit to Ibrahim, he played a fantastic innings. If we look back and reflect, 113 off the last 10 pushed them up to a score that was a very good score on that pitch," he added.
Despite the defeat, Buttler appreciated Joe Root's brilliant century but regretted that no other top-six batter could stay with him to take the game deeper.
"He played an unbelievable innings tonight. The way to handle pressure in a run-chase. He needed one of the other top six batters to stay in with him and take the game deeper," Buttler said.
With this loss, England's Champions Trophy journey has come to an end, and questions remain about the future of Buttler as captain.
Afghanistan waring
Afghanistan's performances at the 50-overs and Twenty20 World Cups mean there is no chance of Australia taking them lightly in Friday's Champions Trophy match, particularly with a place in the semi-finals on the line, coach Jonathan Trott said.
Afghanistan beat England by eight runs in Lahore on Wednesday to stay in the hunt for a berth in the last four, underlining their strength in limited-overs cricket.
Trott's side beat England, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to finish sixth at the 50-overs World Cup in 2023 and followed that up by making the semi-finals of the T20 edition last year, beating Australia along the way.
"It's all on the line, and since I've been coach we've played against Australia three times and we've been in the game in each of those games," former England batter Trott told reporters.
"We should take a lot of confidence from that ... certainly what happened in the World Cup, T20 World Cup, and I say this to the players as well, that Afghanistan's never going to be taken lightly ever again.
"We've got to be prepared because I know Australia aren't going to take us lightly. In the past, perhaps people would have seen the fixture and thought it was a little bit easier than playing a historic test nation.
"In this format, in these conditions, I don't see that. Every game that we play is going to be competitive and every game we go into I expect to win."
Trott said there was a rawness to the team when he took over in 2022 but they have grown with experience.
"I'm quite an ambitious type of guy and I'm ambitious with these talented players," he added.
"Who knows what we can achieve."
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