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Jos Buttler could not make it to Lancashire’s T20 Blast quarterfinal due to a setback in his recovery from a calf injury. He will now have to fight to be fit for England’s T20I series against Australia.
Before their opening Twenty20 International on September 11, England are not too worried about Buttler’s health and expect he will be fit enough to lead the team during Australia’s eight-game white-ball visit. The medical staff of England’s new-look squad will have a better idea of Buttler’s availability on Sunday when they report to the Utilita Bowl for two training days.
There isn’t an official vice-captain for England’s white-ball teams, but Sam Curran and Phil Salt are the front-runners to take Buttler’s place in the event of his absence. It is more likely that he will be able to play even if he has a setback because he is not expected to keep wicket during the Twenty20 International series.
Buttler hasn’t played cricket since England’s T20 World Cup semi-final loss to India in June. Following weeks of recovery, he was hoping to make a comeback in Wednesday’s quarterfinal at Hove after suffering a calf injury during the Hundred preparation in July.
But he has now been ruled out of contention, as their coach Dale Benkenstein confirmed to BBC Radio Lancashire. “We’ve had some bad news on his recovery,” Benkenstein said. “He had an injury he was recovering from, and he’s sort of tweaked it again. He’s not only just out of our T20s, but I think he’s even struggling to make the international ones. He was very keen to play for us.”
Wednesday night in Hove will see Lancashire’s other England players available; Saqib Mahmood, Liam Livingstone, and Salt are all expected to play. Jofra Archer is anticipated to play for Sussex, led by Tymal Mills in the T20 league. Since 2019, Hove has not held a T20 quarter-final in front of a large audience, and for the last two weeks, tickets have been sold out.