The captain of England, Jos Buttler, did not hold back when he acknowledged that India was the superior team during Thursday’s T20 World Cup 2024 semi-final in Guyana.
Jos Buttler, the England captain, expressed disappointment following the team’s semi-final defeat to India, acknowledging that Men in Blue “outplayed” his team and that the Rohit Sharma-led squad deserved to go to the ICC T20 World Cup final since they performed admirably on a “challenging surface.” The two undefeated teams will play each other on Saturday. India will play South Africa in the T20 World Cup final after the Rohit Sharma-led team defeated England by 68 runs at Providence Stadium in Guyana.
The Indian spinners bore the brunt of England’s aggressiveness, erasing the past. The Indian squad avenged their 10-wicket setback at the hands of England, putting the 2022 nightmare behind them for good.
The England captain admitted that his team allowed India to score 20-25 runs and were “outbowled” by the Men in Blue’s bowlers, adding that the toss did not play a big role in the match’s outcome.
Buttler also praised India for playing a “good game of cricket,” noting that he would not expect conditions to change significantly following the rain.
“India definitely outperformed us. We gave them much too many runs (20–25). It was a difficult field that they performed well on. They were superior to us and deserved to win. Much different circumstances (than in 2022), props to India. They had an excellent cricket match. I didn’t think the weather would change so much with the rain. Reject the notion that it did. They outbowled us,” Buttler remarked in a presentation following the game.
“Livingstone and Rashid, our two lads, bowled really well. In retrospect, I should have bowled Moeen given the way the spinners were bowling and the way the spin was playing. We are incredibly pleased with everyone’s work. We failed when it mattered most, but we stuck together,” he continued, acknowledging his error.
Though Buttler praised the Men in Blue’s “fantastic spinner” for taking six wickets, he acknowledged India’s dominance on the Guyana pitch. Even though his squad faced “many adversities throughout the competition,” according to the England skipper, they overcame it as a team to play some really brilliant cricket in spurts.
“Their score was higher than expected. The toss, in my opinion, did not always determine the outcome between the two teams. They has several excellent spinners. It was always going to be a difficult chase because they had an above-average score and a potent bowling attack.
Considering all that has transpired during the competition, I am incredibly impressed of everyone’s effort to be present. Only the person who is placed in front of you can play. “We faced numerous challenges during the competition, demonstrated strong unity as a team, and produced some excellent cricket when it counted most,” he continued.
In the game, India won 171/7 because to late-inning heroics from Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya, as well as Rohit’s fifty and aggressive cameos from Suryakumar Yadav at Providence Stadium.
The Three Lions out firing, determined to hold onto their title as they pursued the aim of 172, but the undefeated Indian team proved to be too formidable for the reigning champs. As England scored at a solid run rate of over 8, Indian supporters began to gradually see images of the 2022 World Cup semifinal.
Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah together took apart the top order, despite the strong starts from openers Buttler and Phil Salt. England needed 100 runs from the final 46 balls at that moment, as they were 72/7.After Jofra Archer, who had scored a fantastic 21 from 15 balls, was thrown out leg before wicket by Japrit Bumrah, ending England’s innings at 103, it was all over for the reigning champions.
