‘The fun of cricket is exploration…I am always looking at other ways of doing things so I can improve’

Ed Smith started as England’s national selector in April and felt that there was one thing, above all others, that he had to do: get Jos Buttler in the Test team. A shortage of recent first-class cricket did not matter.
In doing so, he knew he then had four batsmen — Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes and Buttler — aged 27 or 28 who have known each other for 15 years, and are approaching the peak of their powers, on which to build the team.
One, Root, is captain; another, Bairstow, keeps wicket; Stokes bowls 15 overs a day. Buttler, for Smith, was the exception because he is exceptional. “Unique gifts” was how Smith described what his “luxury player” brought.
Buttler was one of Smith’s first picks to face India at Edgbaston this week, thanks to his performances when he was recalled for the series against Pakistan in May and June. He played both Tests, getting England back into one and helping them win the other.
After that, he was man of the series in an ODI whitewash of Australia and lit up Twenty20s opening the batting. This year, in all three formats, Buttler has leaped forward.
Speaking to Buttler, it is easy to understand how this happened. He is a curious character who says “for me, the fun of cricket is exploration”. He watches his favourite players on TV and studies their strokeplay. He will incorporate anything he can find into his batting and spends hours just testing things.
“How can you do something different?” he asks. “What will changing my grip a little bit do? What happens to the ball if I try to hit in this way? Or use my hands like this?
“Practice is fun. Just going to the nets and exploring. I will watch other guys and study their movements. And then you just need someone who is a good thrower. Paul Collingwood is good. He’s got a great arm and will send it for as long as you want without saying much! It’s more an inward thing. I might ask how something looks or works but it’s more about the feeling I get.”
Buttler is not sure where batting will go next but knows what he wants to achieve: the reduction of risk through rehearsal. “I’m always trying to improve and look at other ways of doing things but I don’t know what’s left out there,” he says.
“It’s about polishing up shots to have the same trust in them as you have in a forward defence. The reverse sweep is a big one. If I’ve practised it enough, there’s no reason why I shouldn’t have the same confidence playing it first ball. A number of times, I’ve got out playing a forward defence, but no-one says I should never play it again!”
For all that, the most pleasing element of his Test return was proving he could nail the fundamentals. “I was very aware I may not play Tests again,” he says.
“Now, I am aware it’s just two games. I think I played very differently to how people expected, which was pleasing. I proved I can play the situation. I do have a defence, I can leave a ball. That’s what it’s all about, being able to adapt.”
Buttler believes that India are the toughest task England could face at home because, while Australia and South Africa always arrive strong, India have an unusually fine set of pace bowlers. He also believes his IPL experience is relevant, even in a game nine times as long.
“Familiarity of facing an action, whether it’s a white ball or a red ball, you pick up some cues and are used to facing them. That helps,” he says. “Sometimes knowing people, sharing a dressing room can help. It takes away fear factor, and some unknowns, having had an insight into them off the field.”
Using IPL experience in a Test series is a reminder of how much Buttler has on his plate. He says the IPL “is something I’m determined to do because I love it and it’s had such a huge impact on my career.”
He will also play with Root at Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash this year but accepts his schedule will need lightening.
Back to Tests. It was India at home where it all started for him in 2014 and he believes he has come full circle.
“I was fearless,” he says. “I’d just moved counties [from Somerset to Lancashire], with the hope of becoming a Test cricketer, and then it happened that summer.
“I didn’t care what it looked like, I just wanted to play the game, play the situation and have a great time. I probably didn’t understand how valuable experience is and thought you could do it or you can’t, whereas now, I have experience to fall back on which helps me stay calm and make good decisions.”
Now, Buttler uses all that experience to lead cricket’s exploration of the possible. For the next six weeks, though, he is just happy to keep proving he can leave the ball alone.
© London Evening Standard