ENG vs SA: We Haven't Played Our Best By A Long Stretch, It's A Reality Check - Jos Buttler

England captain Jos Buttler asserted that he is disappointed with the way the team fared in the home summer against India and South Africa. Buttler and co. lost the third and final T20I against South Africa on Sunday to finish without winning a white-ball series in the summer.

Against India, they lost both the ODI and T20I series by a 1-2 margin. They were outclassed in both the series playing under the new leadership of Buttler. As for the Proteas series, the ODIs ended in a 1-1 draw while the South Africans pouched the T20I series 2-1.

“I think it is a reality check. We haven’t played our best cricket by a long stretch and I don’t think we have been able to impose ourselves.”

“We can’t live in the past and pat ourselves on the backs for the changes that have been made in English cricket and the successes we have had. It’s about looking forward, trying to chase the best teams in the world and being at the forefront of that,” Buttler said after the series.

“You can cope with losing but you want to make sure you stay true to what you believe in” – Jos Buttler

England was a shadow of its usual white-ball self against India and South Africa. While much could be put down to the change in management with Eoin Morgan retiring, Buttler felt the way they played didn’t reflect their trademark aggressive style.

“We do need an honest chat. You don’t want to overreact to situations but you could sense the frustration around the ground with the ‘get on with it, England’ chants. You don’t want to be associated with that.”

“It is the first time I have heard that for a very long time, so that frustration around the group shows we weren’t managing to put on the show we want to put on.

“You can cope with losing but you want to make sure you stay true to what you believe in and I think we fell well short with the way we played,” he added.

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