Jos Buttler
Encyclopedia
Joseph Charles Buttler, commonly known as Jos Buttler, (born 8 September 1990) is an English cricket
er who plays for Somerset County Cricket Club
. He is a right-handed batsman
who also plays as a wicket-keeper
. Buttler enjoyed a prolific cricket record while at school, sharing a record-breaking opening partnership
while at King's College, Taunton in 2008, and the following season his school lost only one of seventeen matches under his captaincy, and he was named 2010 Young Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year
. He made his Somerset first-team debut in 2009. His performances led him to be selected to play for England at Under-19
level, touring Bangladesh
, and then travelling to New Zealand
for the 2010 Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
. Later in the same season, he made his first appearance for Somerset Second XI, scoring 71 in the second-innings, and taking six catches in the three-day match against Nottinghamshire Second XI. Playing for King's College, Taunton, he finished the 2006 season with the school's leading batting average, scoring his 447 runs at 49.66. The following season saw him playing regularly for Glastonbury in the West of England Premier League
, and for Somerset Under-17s, for whom he scored two c
nturies; an unbeaten
119 during a two-day match against Surrey
Under-17s, and 110 against Sussex
Under-17s. He once again led the batting averages for King's College, with his 358 runs coming at 51.14.
The highlight of his school career came in April 2008, when he scored 227 not out
during a record-breaking opening stand
in a 50-over national schools game, adding 340 with Alex Barrow. He captained
King's during the 2008 season, and improved on his batting totals from the previous two years, scoring 851 runs, over 250 more than any other member of the team. His batting average of 94.55 was the sixth highest amongst all school's batsmen reported in Wisden, while his high-score of 227* was the highest score they recorded. During that 2008 season, Buttler also played for Somerset Second XI. With captain Carl Gazzard
keeping wicket in the majority of these matches, Buttler played purely as a batsman, although in his final match of the season for the team, he kept wicket and claimed six catches in the first-innings against Worcestershire Second XI. In the previous match, against Hampshire Second XI, Buttler had made 140 batting from number four
.
He made his first-class
debut for Somerset
in September 2009, replacing the injured Justin Langer
for the County Championship
match against Lancashire
, scoring 30 in his only innings. He retained his place in the team for the following Pro40 match against Hampshire
, making his List A debut, although he was not required to bat. Selected as part of the Somerset squad for the 2009 Champions League Twenty20
, Buttler made his debut in the 20-over format of the game in Somerset's final match of the league stage, remaining six not out at the close of the innings. Buttler again captained King's in 2009, and in the seventeen matches under his leadership they lost only once, and also won the Western School Twenty20 competition. Coupled with his 554 runs for the school at an average of 61.55, and his performances for Somerset, he was named 2010 Young Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year
.
was called up into the England one-day side in 2010, Buttler was given the chance of a prolonged run in Somerset's first team. Brian Rose
, Somerset's Director of Cricket, chose not to bring in an experienced keeper to deputise, explaining that Kieswetter had been in a similar position three years earlier, and that he had good reports of Buttler's ability. In his first match of the 2010 season, Buttler remained 22 not out at the close of Somerset's innings, posting his first runs in List A cricket, and he followed this up with two catches to help Somerset beat Glamorgan
in their opening Clydesdale Bank 40
fixture. He made his maiden first-class century in his fourth County Championship
match, scoring 144 runs in an innings characterised by "dogged determination and [a] decent range of shots". In his next match, he scored his debut List A half-century against Sussex
. Buttler joined James Hildreth
at the crease with Somerset at 109/4, requiring 183 more runs to win off 129 balls. The pair put on a partnership
of 158 runs "to turn the game on its head", with Buttler making 69 in 53 balls. In doing so, they set a new record partnership for the fifth-wicket against Sussex. His continued batting form, which also saw him make scores of 52 and 31* in a County Championship match against Yorkshire
, saw him retain his place in the Somerset team upon Kieswetter's return.
Buttler was named man of the match in Somerset's Friends Provident t20 semi-final victory over Nottinghamshire
at the Rose Bowl, hitting an unbeaten 55 off 23 balls in a partnership of 75 with Kieron Pollard.
. Batting at number five, he scored a rapid 77 not out in the 50-over contest, hitting 11 fours and 2 sixes during the 49 deliveries he faced. He also played in the two-day match between the two teams, scoring 45 in the first-innings as the match was drawn. In 2009, Buttler played four matches for England Under-18s, two each against Scotland A and Scotland Development XI. He scored 103 not out in the first of these matches, and made starts in each of the following matches, reaching double figures on each occasion, but not scoring higher than 28. Two months later, Buttler made his England Under-19
debut, appearing in the first Twenty20
against Bangladesh Under-19s. Playing as a specialist batsman, he scored 33 runs off 17 balls as England won by five wickets.
During the 2009–10 English winter, Buttler toured with the England Under-19 team. He joined up with the squad in Bangladesh following Somerset's elimination from the Champions League Twenty20 for the seven-match youth ODI series. As with his previous appearance for the Under-19s, Buttler played as a specialist batsman, but failed to make a significant impact until the final match when he scored 42 runs, though Bangladesh still won the match to claim the series 5–2. He remained with the team for the Under-19 World Cup, where he played all but one of England's six matches, keeping wicket in three of them. He scored 91 runs in three innings, with a top-score of 78 against India
in the fifth-place play-off semi-final. His batting average of 30.33 ranked him fifth on the England team.
In 2011, he was called up to the England Twenty20 International
squad for the match against India.
. During his century against Hampshire in 2010, he "hit the ball hard and straight", "moving his feet decisively, playing with his bat close to his body and selecting the right balls to attack". After that innings, his Somerset captain Marcus Trescothick
suggested that Buttler could challenge team-mate Kieswetter's place in the England team.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er who plays for Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
. He is a right-handed batsman
Batting (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the cricket ball with a cricket bat to score runs or prevent the loss of one's wicket. A player who is currently batting is denoted as a batsman, while the act of hitting the ball is called a shot or stroke...
who also plays as a wicket-keeper
Wicket-keeper
The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike...
. Buttler enjoyed a prolific cricket record while at school, sharing a record-breaking opening partnership
Partnership (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, two batsmen always bat in partnership, although only one is on strike at any time. The partnership between two batsmen will come to an end when one of them is dismissed or retires, or the innings comes to a close In the sport of cricket, two batsmen always bat in...
while at King's College, Taunton in 2008, and the following season his school lost only one of seventeen matches under his captaincy, and he was named 2010 Young Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year
Young Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year
The Young Wisden Cricketer of the Year is a cricketer selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. The decision is based upon "his or her performances in school's cricket, as reported in Wisden"...
. He made his Somerset first-team debut in 2009. His performances led him to be selected to play for England at Under-19
English U-19 cricket team
The English Under-19 cricket team have been playing official Under-19 test matches since 1974. Prior to 1991/92 they were known as England Young Cricketers....
level, touring Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, and then travelling to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
for the 2010 Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
Early life and career
Buttler played extensively for Somerset's youth teams, appearing at Under-13, Under-15 and Under-17 level. He made his senior club cricket debut for Cheddar before moving to Glastonbury in the 2006 season, aged just 15, claiming three catches and fifteen runs as wicket-keeperWicket-keeper
The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike...
. Later in the same season, he made his first appearance for Somerset Second XI, scoring 71 in the second-innings, and taking six catches in the three-day match against Nottinghamshire Second XI. Playing for King's College, Taunton, he finished the 2006 season with the school's leading batting average, scoring his 447 runs at 49.66. The following season saw him playing regularly for Glastonbury in the West of England Premier League
West of England Premier League
The West of England Premier League is the top level of competition for recreational club cricket in the West of England and is a designated ECB Premier League....
, and for Somerset Under-17s, for whom he scored two c
nturies; an unbeaten
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
119 during a two-day match against Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
Under-17s, and 110 against Sussex
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
Under-17s. He once again led the batting averages for King's College, with his 358 runs coming at 51.14.
The highlight of his school career came in April 2008, when he scored 227 not out
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
during a record-breaking opening stand
Partnership (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, two batsmen always bat in partnership, although only one is on strike at any time. The partnership between two batsmen will come to an end when one of them is dismissed or retires, or the innings comes to a close In the sport of cricket, two batsmen always bat in...
in a 50-over national schools game, adding 340 with Alex Barrow. He captained
Captain (cricket)
The captain of a cricket team often referred to as the skipper is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of a regular player...
King's during the 2008 season, and improved on his batting totals from the previous two years, scoring 851 runs, over 250 more than any other member of the team. His batting average of 94.55 was the sixth highest amongst all school's batsmen reported in Wisden, while his high-score of 227* was the highest score they recorded. During that 2008 season, Buttler also played for Somerset Second XI. With captain Carl Gazzard
Carl Gazzard
Carl Gazzard is a former English cricketer who played for Somerset. He was a right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper.He made his debut for Cornwall in 1998 and was their regular wicket-keeper in 1998 and 1999...
keeping wicket in the majority of these matches, Buttler played purely as a batsman, although in his final match of the season for the team, he kept wicket and claimed six catches in the first-innings against Worcestershire Second XI. In the previous match, against Hampshire Second XI, Buttler had made 140 batting from number four
Batting order (cricket)
In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen play through their team's innings, there always being two batsmen taking part at any one time...
.
He made his first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
debut for Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
in September 2009, replacing the injured Justin Langer
Justin Langer
Justin Lee Langer AM is a former international cricketer who represented Australia in 105 Test matches and the current Assistant Coach and Batting Coach of the Australian cricket team. A left-handed batsman, his opening partnership with Matthew Hayden was one of the most successful of all time...
for the County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
match against Lancashire
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then...
, scoring 30 in his only innings. He retained his place in the team for the following Pro40 match against Hampshire
Hampshire County Cricket Club
Hampshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Hampshire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1863 as a successor to the Hampshire county cricket teams and has played at the Antelope Ground from then until 1885, before moving to the County Ground where it...
, making his List A debut, although he was not required to bat. Selected as part of the Somerset squad for the 2009 Champions League Twenty20
2009 Champions League Twenty20
The 2009 Champions League Twenty20 was the first edition of the Champions League Twenty20, an international club cricket tournament. It was held in India between 8 October and 23 October 2009 and featured 12 domestic teams from Australia, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka and...
, Buttler made his debut in the 20-over format of the game in Somerset's final match of the league stage, remaining six not out at the close of the innings. Buttler again captained King's in 2009, and in the seventeen matches under his leadership they lost only once, and also won the Western School Twenty20 competition. Coupled with his 554 runs for the school at an average of 61.55, and his performances for Somerset, he was named 2010 Young Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year
Young Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year
The Young Wisden Cricketer of the Year is a cricketer selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. The decision is based upon "his or her performances in school's cricket, as reported in Wisden"...
.
First-team opportunity
When Craig KieswetterCraig Kieswetter
Craig Kieswetter is an England cricketer of South African and Scottish heritage. He is a wicket-keeper batsman. An aggressive batsman, he began his career with the South Africa Under-19s, before stating that he wished to play international cricket for England. He began playing county cricket for...
was called up into the England one-day side in 2010, Buttler was given the chance of a prolonged run in Somerset's first team. Brian Rose
Brian Rose (cricketer)
Brian Charles Rose is an English former cricketer, who played in nine Tests and two ODIs for England from 1977 to 1981.-Life and career:...
, Somerset's Director of Cricket, chose not to bring in an experienced keeper to deputise, explaining that Kieswetter had been in a similar position three years earlier, and that he had good reports of Buttler's ability. In his first match of the 2010 season, Buttler remained 22 not out at the close of Somerset's innings, posting his first runs in List A cricket, and he followed this up with two catches to help Somerset beat Glamorgan
Glamorgan County Cricket Club
Glamorgan County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Glamorgan aka Glamorganshire . Glamorgan CCC is the only Welsh first-class cricket club. Glamorgan CCC have won the English County...
in their opening Clydesdale Bank 40
Clydesdale Bank 40
The ECB40, currently known as the Clydesdale Bank 40 for sponsorship reasons, is a forty-over limited overs cricket competition for the English first-class counties. It began in the 2010 English cricket season as a replacement for the Pro40 and Friends Provident Trophy competitions...
fixture. He made his maiden first-class century in his fourth County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
match, scoring 144 runs in an innings characterised by "dogged determination and [a] decent range of shots". In his next match, he scored his debut List A half-century against Sussex
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
. Buttler joined James Hildreth
James Hildreth
James Charles Hildreth is an English cricketer who plays for Somerset County Cricket Club. He attended Millfield School, Somerset. He is a right-handed batsman and occasional right-arm medium pace bowler. Hildreth represented England at all youth levels including the 2003-04 Under-19 World cup...
at the crease with Somerset at 109/4, requiring 183 more runs to win off 129 balls. The pair put on a partnership
Partnership (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, two batsmen always bat in partnership, although only one is on strike at any time. The partnership between two batsmen will come to an end when one of them is dismissed or retires, or the innings comes to a close In the sport of cricket, two batsmen always bat in...
of 158 runs "to turn the game on its head", with Buttler making 69 in 53 balls. In doing so, they set a new record partnership for the fifth-wicket against Sussex. His continued batting form, which also saw him make scores of 52 and 31* in a County Championship match against Yorkshire
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
, saw him retain his place in the Somerset team upon Kieswetter's return.
Buttler was named man of the match in Somerset's Friends Provident t20 semi-final victory over Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws...
at the Rose Bowl, hitting an unbeaten 55 off 23 balls in a partnership of 75 with Kieron Pollard.
International career
Buttler's first taste of international cricket came in July 2008, when he represented England Under-17s in two warm-up matches against New Zealand Under-19sNew Zealand U-19 cricket team
The New Zealand Under-19 cricket team have been playing official Under-19 test matches since 1986. Former captains of the team include Stephen Fleming, Craig McMillan, Chris Cairns and Brendon McCullum...
. Batting at number five, he scored a rapid 77 not out in the 50-over contest, hitting 11 fours and 2 sixes during the 49 deliveries he faced. He also played in the two-day match between the two teams, scoring 45 in the first-innings as the match was drawn. In 2009, Buttler played four matches for England Under-18s, two each against Scotland A and Scotland Development XI. He scored 103 not out in the first of these matches, and made starts in each of the following matches, reaching double figures on each occasion, but not scoring higher than 28. Two months later, Buttler made his England Under-19
English U-19 cricket team
The English Under-19 cricket team have been playing official Under-19 test matches since 1974. Prior to 1991/92 they were known as England Young Cricketers....
debut, appearing in the first Twenty20
Twenty20
Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in England for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board , in 2003. A Twenty20 game involves two teams, each has a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. Twenty20 cricket is also known as T20 cricket...
against Bangladesh Under-19s. Playing as a specialist batsman, he scored 33 runs off 17 balls as England won by five wickets.
During the 2009–10 English winter, Buttler toured with the England Under-19 team. He joined up with the squad in Bangladesh following Somerset's elimination from the Champions League Twenty20 for the seven-match youth ODI series. As with his previous appearance for the Under-19s, Buttler played as a specialist batsman, but failed to make a significant impact until the final match when he scored 42 runs, though Bangladesh still won the match to claim the series 5–2. He remained with the team for the Under-19 World Cup, where he played all but one of England's six matches, keeping wicket in three of them. He scored 91 runs in three innings, with a top-score of 78 against India
Indian U-19 cricket team
The Indian Under-19 cricket team represents the nation of India in cricket at Under-19 level.-2011 Current Team:* Unmukt Chand* Manan Vohra* B Aparajith* M.Bhattacharya* Harmeet Singh* Kumar Deobrat * AD Nath * S Patel * Rush Kalaria...
in the fifth-place play-off semi-final. His batting average of 30.33 ranked him fifth on the England team.
In 2011, he was called up to the England Twenty20 International
Twenty20 International
A Twenty20 International is a form of cricket which is played over 20 overs per side between two national cricket teams. The game is played under the rules of Twenty20 cricket...
squad for the match against India.
Personality and style
A tall and strongly built cricketer, Buttler has an upright stance in the creaseCrease (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, the crease is a certain area demarcated by white lines painted or chalked on the field of play.The term crease also refers to any of the lines themselves, particularly the popping crease. Law 9 of the Laws of Cricket governs the size and position of the crease markings...
. During his century against Hampshire in 2010, he "hit the ball hard and straight", "moving his feet decisively, playing with his bat close to his body and selecting the right balls to attack". After that innings, his Somerset captain Marcus Trescothick
Marcus Trescothick
Marcus Edward Trescothick MBE is an English cricketer. He plays first-class cricket for Somerset County Cricket Club, and represented England in 76 Test matches and 123 One Day Internationals. A left-handed opening batsman, he made his first-class debut for Somerset in 1993 and quickly established...
suggested that Buttler could challenge team-mate Kieswetter's place in the England team.