Jos Buttler set to join Kohli, Gayle on this list
What's the story
Jos Buttler will lead England in the upcoming five-match T20I series against India, starting January 22 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
The England skipper is only 33 runs short of scoring 12,000 runs in T20 cricket.
The feat will see him join cricketing greats like Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle.
If he succeeds, Buttler will be the seventh cricketer to achieve the milestone.
Record chase
Buttler to surpass Hales's record in fewer matches
Buttler's possible feat is especially monumental for England as he would become only the second player from his nation to breach this milestone after Alex Hales.
However, Buttler is set to break Hales's record in fewer matches.
While Hales achieved the 12,000-run milestone in his 435th T20 match, Buttler has only played 429 matches in the format so far, as per ESPNcricinfo.
Stats
Here are Buttler's T20 numbers
One of the finest wicketkeeper-batters in the history of white-ball cricket, Buttler has smashed 11,967 runs in 429 T20 games at an average and strike rate of 34.99 and 145.24, respectively.
The tally includes eight tons and 83 fifties with his best score being 124.
3,389 of these runs have come in T20Is at 35.67. He has registered 25 fifties besides a ton as the veteran is England's leading run-getter in the format.
T20 legends
Gayle leads T20 cricket with most runs
West Indies's Chris Gayle is the fastest player to score 12,000 runs in T20 cricket, having done so in just 343 innings.
He also tops the list of most runs in the format with 14,562 runs from 455 innings.
Apart from him and Hales, India's Virat Kohli, Australia's David Warner, Pakistan's Shoaib Malik, and WI's Kieron Pollard are the other players to have crossed the 12,000-run mark.
Upcoming milestones
Kohli, Sharma also eyeing T20 milestones
Apart from Buttler's imminent feat, other players are also close to reaching milestones in T20 cricket.
Rohit Sharma requires another 170 runs to complete 12,000 runs in this format but will have to wait till the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) as he has retired from T20Is.
India's Virat Kohli is only 114 runs shy of the 13,000-run mark and is likely to cross it during the IPL representing Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).