Jos Buttler becomes first Englishman to complete 2,500 T20I runs
Jos Buttler became the first England batter to complete 2,500 runs in T20Is. The England skipper achieved the milestone in his 102nd match, during England's ICC T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final clash against India. Overall, he became the 10th batter to accomplish the feat. Buttler also slammed his 19th T20I fifty during the game as England won by 10 wickets. Here are the details.
Buttler takes Indian bowlers by storm
Chasing 169 at the Adelaide Oval, England did not break a sweat as openers Buttler and Alex Hales (86*) went berserk from the outset. While Buttler played the second fiddle at the start, he changed gears toward the end. Butter returned unbeaten on 80 off 49 balls (4s: 4, 6s: 7). As a result, the Brits crossed the line with four overs to spare.
Buttler's performance in T20Is
Buttler has been a vital part of England's T20I team for a while now. While he was the designated finisher of the team in his initial years, the team management later promoted him as an opener. His average and strike rate in the format are 34.81 and 144.15, respectively. Overall, Buttler has 2,576 runs in 102 games in T20Is (50s: 19, 100: 1).
Buttler joins an elite list
Meanwhile, the other nine batters to complete 2,500 T20I runs before Buttler are Virat Kohli (4,008), Rohit Sharma (3,853), Martin Guptill (3,531), Babar Azam (3,323), Paul Stirling (3,181), Aaron Finch (3,120), David Warner (2,894), Mohammad Rizwan (2,620), and Mohammad Hafeez (2,514).
How did India's innings pan out?
India posted 168/6 while batting first at the Adelaide Oval. While Virat Kohli (50) smashed a solid half-century at the top, Hardik Pandya went berserk in the end overs. The latter scored a 33-ball 63. While Chris Jordan scalped a three-fer for England, he gave away 43 runs in his four overs. Adil Rashid and Chris Woakes also claimed a wicket apiece.
