AFP: Jos Buttler already has a special place in English cricket given his fame and reputation owe far more to his exploits in white-ball cricket than the traditional Test-match game. But he will cement his status as an England limited-overs great if he leads the side to a successful defence of their one-day international World Cup title in India, having helped them be crowned 50-over global champions for the first time on home soil four years ago. Renowned as a gifted shot-maker right from his time as a promising schoolboy cricketer, the 33-year-old Buttler has flourished in an era where Twenty20 cricket has led to batting innovations such as the ramp and the scoop.
The Somerset-born Buttler found Test cricket a tougher nut to crack, seemingly uncertain as to whether to stick to his natural game or play in a more conservative fashion. England, meanwhile, were sometimes unclear over whether they wanted to play him as a specialist batsman or wicketkeeper. To his credit, Buttler gave Test cricket a good go, playing 57 matches long before he effectively gave himself over to the shorter formats. But just two hundreds from 100 Test innings told its own story. By contrast his 11 ODI hundreds are the most of any active player who bats at No.4 or lower, with nine of those hundreds coming in victories.