After Pat Cummins, Jos Buttler launches a staggering ballistic attack on team India
Published - 26 Feb 2025, 11:43 AM | Updated - 26 Feb 2025, 11:45 AM
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England National Cricket Team captain Jos Buttler has taken a subtle dig at India for having a unique advantage of playing all their matches in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai while other teams travel across venues in Pakistan.
Jos Buttler was seemingly not happy with the India National Cricket Team getting the rare luxury of staying in a city and playing all matches simply at a single venue, which is undeniably giving Rohit Sharma and his team a crucial edge in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Jos Buttler unhappy with India’s home-like advantage in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025
With the ICC’s special treatment, the Men in Blue can entirely focus and plan their strategy and sharpen their plans based on Dubai's conditions without any travel or the challenges of unfamiliar pitches in the ongoing prestigious tournament.
The other participating teams are dealing with different conditions and travel fatigue, but Buttler chose to stay focused on England’s campaign as they are gearing up for their important Group B match against Afghanistan on February 26 at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
His sharp “unique tournament” attack on India comes after former England captains Mike Atherton and Nasser Hussain raised concerns about the Men in Blue benefiting from the more-than-home-like advantage in the tournament.
With the tournament heating up, Mike Atherton and Nasser Hussain claimed this advantage would make a difference in the Indian cricket team’s title chase.
It's a unique tournament: Jos Buttler's sharp dig at India
Jos Buttler said at the pre-match press conference in Lahore on Tuesday, “Not really. I think it's a unique tournament already, isn't it, with it being hosted here with one team playing in a different place, but that's not something I'm too worried about at the moment. I've got all my focus on preparing well tonight and our game tomorrow.”
Notably, the BCCI didn’t get clearance from the Indian government to send the national cricket team to Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 due to security concerns, given the ongoing border tensions. This led to multiple discussions between the ICC, BCCI, and PCB to find a solution.
Read Also: England Playing 11 vs Afghanistan- ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Match 8
After several meetings, the ICC finalized a hybrid model for the tournament. Under this arrangement, India will play all of its matches at a neutral venue in Dubai, while the rest of the tournament will be held in Pakistan across three cities—Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Karachi.
Must-win games ahead for Jos Buttler and Co. to make it to the semifinals
Meanwhile, England is yet to open its account in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025, having lost their first game to Australia by five wickets last week. However, Buttler’s team still has two games to make it to the semifinals after the Australia-South Africa match was washed out in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.
New Zealand and India have already qualified for the semifinals from Group A, while South Africa and Australia—both have three points and sit at the first and second spots, respectively—have the better chances to make it to the top four of the ongoing Champions Trophy 2025.
However, if Australia beats Afghanistan on February 28, then they will qualify for the semifinals. On the other hand, South Africa will have to outsmart England on March 1 to make it to the top four. For England, they would be hoping to win both of their remaining games to qualify for the semifinals.
