Jos Buttler Stepped Down As ODI Captain
Jos Buttler has officially stepped down as the One Day International captain of England, which did bring a very significant update to the cricketing world, marking the end of a very rocky chapter in his leadership journey as revealed in the announcements made on February 28, 2025.
The announcement followed the disappointing exit of England from the ICC Champions Trophy, a tournament that had put immense scrutiny on Buttler’s captaincy.Even though England lost their fixtures against Australia and Afghanistan, which sealed their doom for the group stages, this left Jos Buttler to reflect deeply on his role. At the age of 34, he regrettably accepted the need to step down from white-ball captaincy, with the match against South Africa on the same day being his last as captain, bringing an end to a term characterized by highs and lows.
After being appointed captain in June 2022, Buttler progressed with great promise following Eoin Morgan. Morgan is a well-respected figure who steered England to ODI World Cup triumph in 2019, leaving sizeable shoes to fill, but Buttler managed to quickly stamp his authority on the crew, guiding England to 2022 T20 World Cup glory in Australia.
His captaincy in that tournament drew applause, more so for his tactical astuteness in conducting a masterclass performance during the semi-finals against India, where he and Alex Hales chased down 170 runs with ten wickets in hand. It practically sealed England’s dual white-ball champion title-holding both ODI & T20 Titles; as dual champions, it gave a sense of hope for the time to come under Buttler’s captaincy. His more aggressive batting style and calm demeanor appeared to fit into the team’s fearless, attacking approach with four open arms.
But the shine of that success started to dim as England’s white-ball story began plunging; jump to the 2023 ODI World, which was a day-night contrast from the glorious chases of past. England, defending champions, stumbled their way through the tournament, losing six out of nine matches and a departure before the knockout stages. Under scrutiny, Buttler’s leadership came as a problem in the time of under-performance: repeat that with the 2024 T20 World, where England exited compared to the previous edition; they were beaten heavily in the semi-finals against India. The breaks, weighing and singular in series defeats, painted a picture of a team in transition and a captain under mounting pressure.
The Champions Trophy 2025 became the tipping point. England opened their campaign with a five-wicket defeat against Australia, having, however, scored a hefty 351-8 on the board, revealing frailties in their bowling unit.
The crushing eight-run defeat against Afghanistan in Lahore pulled the last nail in the coffin on their tournament aspirations. Questions were raised over Buttler’s position in the side after a lengthy absence from this format of the game due to a recurring injury on his calf. Earning a passionate outcry about possible changes, he implied in the post-match presentation that he had no intention to make any emotional decisions today- he had to consider all options. The words of the experienced man bore upon him with a mind raging between exaltation and despair as England’s fortunes kept swinging downward.
England’s ODI record under Buttler had been vanilla: out of the 34 ODIs he played since taking over from Morgan, he suffered 22 defeats. The awful number of 15 defeats in the last 21 ODIs summed up the dire straits in which he found himself. Commentators, including former England captains Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton, even pushed him to step down, while Hussain pointed out that it appeared that captaining did not completely suit
Buttler despite him being popular. On the other hand, Atherton argued that repeated failures at crucial ICC tournaments called for changes. BBC cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew seconded this idea, asserting that relieving Buttler of captaincy could benefit him as a player, granting him the opportunity to connect once more with the other brilliant style of batting that crowned him one of the greatest white-ball players England has ever produced.
Buttler’s resignation was not only a reflection of political pressure from outside but also a way for him to admit the repercussions of leadership took its toll on him. He previously spoke of the emotional challenges of his role, admitting, after the loss to Afghanistan, he needed to assess if he was “part of the problem or part of the solution.”
At the age of 34, with the next 50-over World Cup in 2027, when Buttler will be 37, he likely regarded the quit of captaincy as an opportunity to extend his playing career. With him being England’s highest T20I run-scorer and a figurehead in the World Cup victory in 2019, thus after it, it stood that he could still make a telling contribution as a player.
Buttler’s departure came as part of a wider reset in England’s white-ball setup. Mott’s resignation occurred post the team’s World Cup failure in July 2024, while Brendon McCullum, the transformative coach of the Test team, was due to take over white-ball duties from January 2025. Buttler was enthusiastic about working with McCullum, a man whose breathtaking “Bazball” philosophy had brought England’s Test side back to life. However, Buttler’s resignation came sooner than that of the Champions Trophy fiasco, and such a change in captaincy became a foregone conclusion, with the aim to align McCullum under the mantle.
Speculation about Buttler’s successor exploded almost immediately. Steeped in controversy and a bizarre series against Australia in September 2024, Harry Brook was high on that list. Being 25 years old, Brook brought his youthful flair to the captaincy; he took charge during five ODIs and ended as the series’ highest runs-getter, despite having to end up on the losing side, 3-2.
His appointment as vice-captain to Buttler made his case with Northern Superchargers during The Hundred even stronger. Phil Salt was yet another contender; he had captained England to a tied T20I series against Australia and offered a more aggressive batting style than Brook. This is, of course, debatable, given his patchy form. Liam Livingstone entered the fray too, with a more or less similar resume, with the last bit including a scintillation unbeaten 124 against West Indies in Antigua leading the team in the Caribbean during Buttler’s absence due to injury.
Buttler’s legacy, as a captain, would be a story of two halves: the glorious 2022 followed by the bursting of glory all too abruptly. His aim had tried to capture the tilt of transitioning from a golden period in Morgan to a new phase marked with inconsistency and rebuilding.
And as broad a smile as he’s wearing right now at the thought of handing over the baton, Buttler is adamant that he wants to walk the field as a player; the down time due to injury has stoked his desire all over again. Now, it turns its gaze towards the future: a search for a captain who can pull the strengths out of this team, give England their white-ball glory back, with Brook, Salt, and Livingstone amongst those stepping up. As it stands, Buttler would bid a bittersweet adieu to the captaincy against South Africa, having suffered through the burden of being a good man but never quite fitting into his role.
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