Admitting that India completely outplayed them in the T20 World Cup semi-final, England captain Jos Buttler said in retrospect that it was a tactical mistake on his part not to bowl Moeen Ali on a Providence spin pitch here.
Indian twins Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav took three wickets each as the defending champions folded for 103 in 16.4 overs in their chase of 172 in a rain-interrupted semi-final here on Thursday.
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“Yes, it is disappointing. I think India played better than us. They fully deserved the win,” Buttler said in the post-match media interaction.
“They had an above-average score. I was hoping to hold them to probably 145-150 on that pitch. It was always going to be a tough chase from there.”
After winning the toss, the England captain came in with an unchanged XI and it was Adil Rashid and Liam Livingstone who were his chosen spinners, overlooking Moeen Ali, perhaps to deal with the wet conditions.
Rashid and Livingstone conceded just 49 runs in their eight overs and the former also ended India captain Rohit Sharma’s explosive innings with a 39-ball 57 in the 14th over.
Asked if there was a failure in plans or execution, Buttler said: “A bit of both. I think they bowled well as well. I think we bowled a bit unlucky in the power play, there were some tough situations there.”
“But yeah, I think with the benefit of hindsight and reflection, I would have had Moeen (Ali) in the game, of course. So, yeah, bits and pieces here and there,” Buttler admitted.
The ball spun wildly and stayed low as Rohit fielded close range players who resembled those played in Indian Tests.
“I think everyone knew what to expect from this wicket. I think traditionally the bounce is low. And yes, I thought India played very well and they played the conditions better than us.”
Asked about his playing combination, Buttler said: “We thought a lot about the selection, about whether we kept the same balance that had worked well or whether we needed four seam bowlers on that particular wicket. It was a very difficult decision that we made and we ended up sticking with what we had.”
“India played a very good game of cricket, whoever the team was or whatever happened in the toss, they were going to be a tough team to beat and we had to be at our best if we wanted to win the game and today we weren’t at our best.”
India will face South Africa in the final and Buttler feels it will be a close match.
“The two teams leading in the final will be playing each other by a narrow margin and it will be a great match. They are two really good teams,” he said.
Buttler’s side managed to beat only one Test-playing nation, the West Indies, in this tournament and were on the brink of early elimination after a loss to Scotland and a defeat to Australia in the group stage.
However, Australia gave them a lifeline by beating Scotland and they narrowly managed to reach the Super 8 by beating Namibia via the DLS method.
“To get to a World Cup semi-final is an achievement. Obviously we wanted to go all the way. That’s what we came here for,” said Buttler, who led them to the T20 World Cup title in 2022 after taking over the white-ball captaincy from Eoin Morgan.
“We have faced a lot of challenges and adversity throughout the tournament and we have stuck together and played well enough to get to this stage. But unfortunately, at this stage, we have not been up to the task.”
“I think we’ve all progressed and we’ve played well and not well enough, but I think the things we’ve been doing behind the scenes, the way we’ve prepared, the way we’ve trained, the way we’ve I’ve played in patches it’s been really good.
“There is a lot of talent in the team. And yes, today we are facing a top-level team in these conditions,” he said.
Asked if there would be new faces next time, he said: “Yes, I think… I can’t do that. I haven’t come to terms with the defeat. I’m thinking a lot about this game and what happened and yes, I think they say there’s some time between today and the next games and we can see what happens.”
On his future plans and whether he will remain as captain until the Champions Trophy in Pakistan in February, he said: “To be honest, I’m looking forward to spending some time away from the game.
“As I sit here, emotional after a loss, I don’t need to get too deep into it right now. I just hope I have some space in the game.
