With the benefit of hindsight, would have got Moeen to bowl: Buttler

India comprehensively outplayed England on a spin-friendly wicket, with Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Jasprit Bumrah shutting the door on them after Rohit Sharma led India’s batting efforts to score 171 in the second semi-final of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024. The second Indian spinners came into the picture, floodgates opened pretty fast, and it was a one-way street from thereon.

England skipper Jos Buttler admitted that letting India score 170 took the game away from them. However, upon reflection, he believes bringing Moeen Ali would have been crucial instead of letting four pacers do the bulk of the work.

“Yeah, disappointing. I think we were outplayed by India. They fully deserved the victory. So, yeah, I thought they had an above-par score. I was hoping to restrict them to 145 - 150, probably on that pitch. It was always going to be a tough chase from there,” Buttler said in the post-match press conference.

“A little bit of both. I thought they played well as well. I thought we bowled a little bit without luck in the power play; there were a few close calls there. But, yes, I think the benefit of hindsight and reflecting, I would have got Moeen [Ali] in the game of course. So, yes, bits and pieces here and there.”

However, Buttler added that the decision to bowl first wasn’t taken in haste, and they had thought it through. He also defended the team selection while adding that they were short of their best.

“Not at the toss. I don't think that was the difference between the two sides. We thought long and hard about selection, about whether we kept the same balance that we'd been playing with that had been working well, or did we need four seamers on that particular wicket,” the English skipper said. 

“I think that was a really tough call that we made, and we ended up sticking with what we had. I think India played a really good game of cricket, whatever team or whatever happened at the toss - they were going to be a tough team to beat, and we had to be at our best if we were going to win the game, and were short of our best today.

“I think reaching a semi-final of a World Cup is an achievement. We wanted to obviously go all the way. That was what we came here for. We faced lots of challenges and adversity throughout the whole tournament and we've stuck together well and played well enough to get to this stage. But unfortunately, at this stage, we've fallen short.”

England will have some time to refresh before the busy home calendar begins. Buttler plans to take some time off from the game to recharge himself and doesn’t want to delve too much into the loss to India.

“To be honest, I'm just looking forward to some time away from the game. I think, as I sit here, emotional after a loss, I don't need to dive too deep into it right now. I just look forward to some space from the game,” the Taunton-born wicket-keeper batter added.

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